“Rishabh will undergo surgery and subsequent procedures for ligament rupture and will be monitored by the BCCI Medical Team during his recovery and rehabilitation,” the BCCI said in a statement on Wednesday. “The board will make every effort to support and expedite Rishabh’s recovery process and will provide him with all the support he needs during this time.”
In Mumbai, Pant will be under the care of Dr Dinshaw Pardiwala, who has previously worked with Sachin Tendulkar, Yuvraj Singh, Jasprit Bumrah and Ravindra Jadeja, as well as other athletes. Pardiwala is Chief – the Sports Medicine Center and Director – Arthroscopy and Shoulder Service at Kokilaben Hospital in Andheri, a suburb of Mumbai.
Following immediate emergency care at Saksham Hospital in Roorkee, Pant was transferred to Max Hospital in Dehradun where he underwent plastic surgery on the cuts, facial injuries and abrasions. MRI scans done that evening on his brain and spine returned normal results, but scans of the knee and foot were delayed due to pain and swelling.
It is still too early to set a timetable for Pant’s return to athletics and then to top-level cricket. He hasn’t started walking yet. India’s three big assignments in 2023 are the four Tests against Australia at home in February-March, a possible World Test Championship final in England in June and the ODI World Cup in India in October-November. Pant’s chances of playing the Test series against Australia appear slim, although it cannot be ruled out. The other major event is the IPL, in April-May, where Pant tops the Delhi capital.
* The article was updated after Pant was hospitalized in Mumbai.