India’s BGT 2024-25 batter to miss Ranji Trophy matches due to finger fracture: Reports

Bengal opening batter Abhimanyu Easwaran has reportedly sustained a hairline fracture on the middle finger of his right hand, which rules him out of the upcoming set of matches in the 2024-25 Ranji Trophy. He was named as the reserve opener for the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) but failed to avail a single opportunity.

The right-handed batter is said to have suffered the injury after being hit during a club match in the CAB (Cricket Association of Bengal) league. A report from IANS mentions that the fracture will take at least three weeks to heal completely.

Easwaran returned to India after the culmination of the Border-Gavaskar series Down Under and participated in the 2024-25 Vijay Hazare Trophy preliminary quarter-final clash against Haryana in Vadodara. Batting at No. 3, he scored 10, as Bengal lost by 72 runs.

In the first leg of the Ranji Trophy, he played the opening clash against Uttar Pradesh and recorded a sublime unbeaten hundred in the second innings of the drawn contest. The batter was then involved with the India 'A' side in Australia for a two-match unofficial Test series but failed to be among the runs.

With Rohit Sharma missing the series opener in Perth, Easwaran was in contention to open the innings alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal. However, KL Rahul pipped him for the spot as India shuffled their batting unit entirely.

Bengal set to face Haryana and Punjab in the remainder of their group stage fixtures

Bengal are currently placed third in Elite Group C of the 2024-25 Ranji Trophy. They are unbeaten in the campaign so far but have already recorded three draws in five matches, while their match against Bihar was abandoned due to rain.

With Haryana and Kerala ahead of them in the table, the Anustup Majumdar-led side need positive results to qualify for the knockouts.

Bengal are scheduled to face Haryana from January 23 onwards, while their last group stage match against Punjab will begin from January 30. The upcoming set of Ranji fixtures will witness several high-profile players return to the domestic setup as per the BCCI's latest set of guidelines.