There has been a lot of confusion when it comes to Shreyas Iyer and his fitness ever since he has been dropped from the Indian Test team after the second Test against England last month. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) wanted him to play Ranji Trophy matches for Mumbai but he complained of back issues resurfacing while playing long innings. At the same time, NCA cleared him of any injury and Iyer missing the quarterfinal of Ranji Trophy due to back injury didn't go well with the BCCI.
He had to face the consequences of the same too as he was omitted from the central contracts list announced. Soon, Shreyas Iyer made himself available for the semifinal of the domestic tournament and also featured in the final that concluded on Thursday (March 14) with Mumbai winning the Ranji Trophy for 42nd time. But the middle-order batter didn't take the field on the last two days of the final due to back injury especially after smashing 95 runs in the second innings.
Now this is where all the confusion starts. Did Iyer play despite not being fully fit? Did NCA make a mistake in diagnosing his back injury when it declared him fit? There have been reports of Iyer likely to miss few matches for KKR in IPL 2024. But Mumbai team manager Bhushan Patil has confirmed that the cricketer is fine and will be soon joining his IPL team. "There is no cause for concern; he is fine and will be going to Kolkata for the pre-IPL camp in two days," Bhushan said.
Meanwhile, Iyer also underwent scans following his 95-run knock in the second innings and according to Cricbuzz, the reports were inconclusive and the exact diagnosis will only be known once MCA receives official communication from the NCA in Bengaluru.
Amidst all the confusion, one thing is now clear that Shreyas Iyer is having a troubled back right now. But will that injury keep him away from the initial matches of IPL 2024? Will Iyer have to check in to NCA once before the IPL starts? Only time will tell.