South Africa pacer Lungi Ngidi is the latest addition to the list of injuries ahead of the 2024 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). He was set to turn up for Delhi Capitals but has been ruled out of the entire season now due to a lower back injury. The Capitals have signed Australia youngster Jake Fraser-McGurk as his replacement for his reserve price of Rs 50 lakh.
McGurk played three matches for Dubai Capitals in the second edition of International League T20 that concluded last month. His hitting skills impressed many it seems as he scored 109 runs at a strike-rate of 213.72 with the best score of 54. Interestingly, McGurk made his international debut too last month playing two ODIs against the West Indies.
Even in those games he scored 51 runs, with highest being 41, at a strike-rate of 221.73. The 21-year-old has overall played 37 T20 matches so far smashing 645 runs at a strike-rate of 133.54. But realistically, he made a name for himself in the Big Bash League this season thanks for his fearless hitting opening the innings for Melbourne Renegades.
He scored 257 runs at a brilliant strike-rate of 158.64 smashing 18 sixes during his stint in the league and subsequently was picked to play for Australia in ODIs vs West Indies. He was also in the squad for third T20I against the same team but didn’t get the chance.
Moreover, DC head coach Ricky Ponting rates him highly and expects him to be next all-format star like David Warner.
Harry Brook pulls out of IPL 2024
Lungi Ngidi fails to be fit for IPL 2024
Coming back to Lungi Ngidi, he sustained the lower back injury during the second edition of SA20 and is still recovering from it. He hasn’t played many matches in his IPL career so far despite also playing for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) before. Overall, he has featured in 14 games picking up 25 wickets with an economy rate of 8.3.
Ngidi would’ve bolstered the Capitals’ bowling attack but injuries have often held him back even in international cricket. According to reports, he is expected to be fit in April and will be back on the field to prove his fitness in the CSA T20, the domestic tournament in South Africa. His aim now will be to get fit in time for the upcoming T20 World Cup that will be played in June in West Indies and the USA.
With Ngidi ruled out, Delhi Capitals are now left with Anrich Nortje, Mukesh Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Khaleel Ahmed, Jhye Richardson and Rasikh Salam in the fast-bowling line-up. Mitchell Marsh is also the fast bowling all-rounder but it is not yet certain how much he will bowl.
Meanwhile, Delhi Capitals have one more replacement to name with their overseas batter Harry Brook pulling out of IPL 2024 with his grandmother passing away recently. The cricketer himself revealed the reason for missing the cash-rich league and it remains to be seen if the Capitals will look at any bowler for replacement.