Hamstring injury may lay Kaif low

Mohammad Kaif might have to sit out a few games owing to a hamstring injury © Getty Images

Mohammad Kaif is likely to miss the opening few games of the forthcoming one-day series against Sri Lanka, beginning on October 25, after tearing a hamstring while fielding in the final of the Challenger Trophy at Mohali. Greg Chappell, the coach, wasn't willing to make any definitive prediction but told media persons at the end of the game that Kaif's injury could keep him out for "a week or two".

Kaif, who led the India Seniors, dived near the boundary in the 9th over of the India B innings and couldn't recover for the rest of the match. Chappell said it was too early to comment on the exact nature of the injury but felt it was a "Grade 1 tear of the hamstring in the left leg".

He added that Kaif will be assessed again tomorrow and it will be "a lot easier after 24 hours to get some idea of the sort of time that it's going to take. But it's probably going to be a week or two before he's fit to play again."

The seven-match series against Sri Lanka kicks off at Nagpur and India may well go into the game without both Sourav Ganguly and Mohammad Kaif in their ranks. Whether they will be fit enough for any part of the series, against a strong Sri Lankan side that start as favourites, remains to be seen.