KL Rahul says his chances of playing in the Champions Trophy are ‘very, very slim’

India’s opening batsman KL Rahul all but ruled himself out of the upcoming Champions Trophy in May in a conversation with Times of India on Thursday.

“I will just have to wait and see but the chances are very, very slim,” Rahul told the publiction about his chances of playing in the tournament. The 25-year-old, who plays for Royal Challengers Bangalore, was ruled out of the ongoing tenth edition of the Indian Premier League after sustaining an injury to his shoulder during the first Test in Pune of the India-Australia series.

“I had torn my labrum (a ring of fibrocartilage). I couldn’t get into a few positions because my shoulder kept dislocating - popped out and popped back in,” said Rahul. “That’s why I couldn’t play a lot of shots, had to restrict myself. I played with a lot of medication and taping. Surgery was to fix it on the inside.”

The 25-year-old said the recovery was supposed to take close to “2-3 months” but it depended on every kind of body.

“It was just that moment in Pune when I played that shot - not the one I got out but the one that I hit that went for six (lofted Steve O’Keefe down the ground),” said Rahul. “That’s when I knew that my shoulder dislocated and went back in. Obviously I got out again playing the same shot, so by then I think it was completely damaged, couldn’t do anything after that.”

Despite the injury, Rahul finished the series as India’s second highest run-getter with six fifties in seven innings.

“It is very frustrating for a young man who is just new to international cricket - two and a half years now. I’ve already been injured twice or thrice,” said the 25-year-old. “To be injury-free is a very wishful thought for a sportsman, but at least to be fit for as long as you can and minimise the injuries will be my goal once I get back, or starting from today.”