Rajat Patidar likely to miss first half of IPL 2023 due to heel injury - Reports 

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) batter Rajat Patidar is likely to miss the first half of the upcoming 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) season due to a heel injury.

According to a report by ESPNCricinfo. he suffered the injury prior to joining the ongoing RCB training camp and is currently undergoing rehab at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bangalore.

He was reportedly advised to rest for three weeks after sustaining the injury. The call concerning his inclusion and participation for the second half of the season will be taken after an MRI scan is conducted after the aforementioned three-week rest period.

The report further states that he will require clearance from NCA to join up with the RCB squad for the latter half of the campaign.

RCB recently commenced their training with the majority of the squad, including skipper Faf du Plessis and veteran wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik.

Virat Kohli is expected to partake in training after reaching Bangalore on Saturday, March 25, ahead of the RCB Unbox event, which will witness Chris Gayle and AB de Villiers being inducted into the RCB Hall Of Fame.

Meanwhile, RCB are also fretting over the fitness of bowling spearhead Josh Hazlewood. The newly No.1 ranked ODI bowler did not partake in Australia's recently concluded tour of India. Additionally, all-rounder Glenn Maxwell, who played one ODI during the series against the Men in Blue, also stated that it will take more time for his leg to heal completely.

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Rajat Patidar came in as an injury replacement midway through IPL 2022 and was retained at the end of the season

Rajat Patidar was penciled in at No.3, having done a spectacular job after coming in as an injury replacement for wicketkeeper Luvnith Sisodia.

Patidar scored 333 runs in seven matches at a strike rate of 152.75, with his highlight being the sensational hundred that he scored against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at the Eden Gardens, to seal RCB's progress into Qualifier 2.

While the in-form Virat Kohli was in line to open the innings with Faf du Plessis, much like the second half of IPL 2022, RCB might have to shuffle their batting order in light of Patidar's injury.

RCB have two reserve openers in the form of Anuj Rawat and Finn Allen, with the latter yet to debut.

Should Hazlewood be unavailable, his overseas slot could potentially be used for Allen's inclusion with an Indian bowler like Akash Deep joining the pace attack, much like the franchise did in the initial matches of IPL 2022.

How will RCB cope up with the absence of Rajat Patidar in IPL 2023? Let us know what you think.