Irfan Pathan joins Gujarat Lions after injured Bravo limps out of IPL
Irfan Pathan, who went unsold during the auction, has been brought in as a replacement for Dwayne Bravo by Gujarat Lions for their remaining seven matches in the 2017 Indian Premier League.
An official from the Gujarat Lions confirmed the development late on Monday night, stating Pathan will join their roster. Sportstarlive reported that he is already in Bangalore with the team where they will play their next game against Royal Challengers Bangalore on April 27.
The franchisee announced on Sunday that Bravo, who failed to recover from a hamstring injury, was out for the rest of the tournament.
How good a replacement the Baroda all-rounder turns out to be remains to be seen as over the last couple of years he hasn’t been the player he once was. He has been dogged with injuries which has taken a toll on him performance.
He was part of the Rising Pune Supergiant stable last season but failed to make any impact. In four matches he played for Pune in the last edition of IPL, he failed to pick a wicket. This will be a lucky break for Pathan, who went unsold during the 2017 auction despite having a base price of just Rs50.
He had a decent outing with ball during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in which he picked up five wickets in four games at an average of 17.6 and an economy rate of 6.28. However, he struggled with the bat, managing just 32 runs.
GUJARAT LIONS ANNOUNCED THAT BRAVO, WHO DIDN’T RECOVER FROM A HAMSTRING INJURY, WAS OUT OF IPL.