Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) will be having plenty to think about leading up to the IPL as pacer Josh Hazlewood and specialist batsman Rajat Patidar are set to miss the tournament’s first half.

While Australian Hazlewood is yet to recover from Achilles tendonitis which ruled him out of Australia’s recent Test series against India, Patidar sustained a heel injury and is currently working on his recovery at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bangalore.

“Josh needs at least four to five matches before he’s fit to be a part of the XI,” an RCB source said.

But with the World Test Championship final at The Oval beginning on June 7, it won’t be surprising if Cricket Australia is extra careful about the top pacer.

As for Patidar, he may go for an MRI on April 14. “It’s more of a freak injury for Patidar. It’s not an old injury which has resurfaced.

“He has been here at the NCA for the last 15-20 days, but at present, he seems to be on the road to recovery. It’s not that he’s completely unable to move, rather he’s even doing a bit of batting.

“So he can be hopeful of being fit by the time the second half of the IPL begins,” an NCA insider stated.

Rahul slips to Grade B

Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel and Hardik Pandya have got promotions, while KL Rahul has been demoted in the BCCI annual contracts which were announced on Sunday.

All-rounder Jadeja has been rewarded with an elite Grade A+ contract, while Axar and Hardik have climbed up to Grade A from Grade C. However, Rahul, who till a few months back was being considered a future India captain, has slipped to Grade B after a string of poor performances.

Besides Jadeja, the other players in the A+ category are captain Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah, who retains his elite status despite missing action for most of last year.

Senior players Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ishant Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane are the notable absentees from the list of 26 contracted players.

Keeper KS Bharat has earned a maiden contract in Grade C.

While Grade A+ comes with a retainership amount of Rs 7 crore, for Grades A, B and C the guaranteed amounts are Rs 5 crore, Rs 3 crore and Rs 1 crore, respectively.

OUR BUREAU