The doctors are understood to have told the Kings that Rahul will be able to re-start all activity after a week’s rest
KL Rahul successfully underwent surgery for appendicitis on Monday. ESPNcricinfo understands that Rahul, the India batsman and Punjab Kings’ captain, is set to return to the IPL bubble and undergo the required quarantine before reuniting with the Kings.
The Kings apparently flew Rahul on a charter flight to Mumbai, where he underwent laparoscopic appendectomy, a minimally invasive surgery. The doctors are understood to have told the Kings that Rahul will be able to re-start all activity after a week’s rest. The Kings will now consult with the IPL to determine Rahul’s quarantine period and other protocols that would need to be followed in order for him to start playing again.
Hours before the Kings’ match on Sunday, against the Delhi Capitals in Ahmedabad, the team issued a statement stating that Rahul had suffered “acute appendicitis” after complaining of “severe abdomen pain” on Saturday. He had last played on April 30, where his unbeaten 91 was the backbone of the Kings’ victory against the Royal Challengers Bangalore.
Rahul is among the tournament’s top scorers so far, with 331 runs in seven innings at an average of 66.20 and strike rate of 136.21, including four half-centuries. The Kings will be keen to get him back on the field as soon as possible, as they look to lift themselves into the top four in the second half of the group games: currently they sit sixth on the table, with three wins in eight games.
They had named Mayank Agarwal stand-in captain in his absence. He duly smacked 99 not out off 58 against the Capitals on Sunday, but with little support from the rest of the batting – they managed only 166 for 6 in their 20 – they fell to a seven-wicket defeat.
Nagraj Gollapudi is news editor at ESPNcricinfo