Bhuvneshwar set for long injury lay-off

Bhuvneshwar is now scheduled to undergo surgery for sports hernia -- which he has been carrying for over a period of three months -- after which he will have to undergo a two-month recovery period.

Mumbai pacer Shardul Thakur has been named as replacement for the injured Bhuvneshwar Kumar for the three-match ODI series against West Indies, beginning in Chennai, on Sunday.

Bhuvneshwar complained of pain in his right groin after the final T20I in Mumbai on Wednesday. He underwent an ultrasound scan conducted by a specialist and the BCCI medical team found that his sportsman's hernia symptoms have resurfaced, the BCCI said in a media release on Saturday.

A specialist opinion will now be sought, and his management plan will be decided accordingly, the release added.

UP pacer Bhuvneshwar, who made his comeback recently after being sidelined due to a hamstring injury and side-strain, has suffered a setback only three matches into his return.

This is the second change to the original squad announced by the selectors after Shikhar Dhawan was replaced by Karnataka batsman Mayank Agarwal.

Thakur had featured in Mumbai's Ranji Trophy game against Baroda in Vadodara, which concluded on Thursday.

Apparently, Bhuvneshwar looks set for a long injury lay-off after it emerged that the pacer had been carrying sportsman's hernia all along which the doctors failed to notice, according to a report in the Times of India on Saturday.

Sources in the know told the newspaper that "he was rushed back into the game and it's turning out to be a disaster".

The report further adds that Bhuvneshwar is now scheduled to undergo surgery for sports hernia -- which he has been carrying for over a period of three months -- after which he will have to undergo a two-month recovery period.

“He will certainly miss the entire tour of New Zealand. Probably should be in a position to return to cricket only during the IPL, if all goes well," said sources.

India's squad for West Indies ODIs: Virat Kohli (captain), Rohit Sharma (vice-captain), Mayank Agarwal, KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Rishabh Pant, Shivam Dube, Kedar Jadhav, Ravindra Jadeja, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Deepak Chahar, Mohammed Shami, Shardul Thakur.