Harry Gurney set to miss T20 Blast and IPL due to shoulder injury
Nottinghamshire left-arm pacer Harry Gurney will be out of Cricketing action for a while, due to an injury to his shoulder. He will miss out on two key tournaments in the process, the T20 Blast in England, which goes underway later today, and the IPL, starting in less than a month.
Gurney, who was supposed to start his second season with the Kolkata Knight Riders, having been picked by the Shahrukh Khan co-owned franchise last year for INR 75 Lakh, will undergo an operation next month. ESPNCricinfo was told by Gurney that he will not be travelling to the United Arab Emirates to join the team.
Gurney took 7 wickets in the 8 games he played for KKR last year. He was awarded the player of the match award for his performance of 2 for 25 in 4 overs against Rajasthan Royals in Jaipur.
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Gurney said, “Having gone through the same frustrations as everyone this year in waiting for cricket to restart, I’m devastated to have to miss the Blast. Some of the proudest moments in my career have been with Notts, and nothing quite compares to being out on the field at Trent Bridge competing for trophies with some of my best mates. To have that taken away for a year is tough.”
Harry Gurney took 7 wickets in the 8 IPL matches he played in 2019
Nottinghamshire head coach Peter Moores said that losing harry Gurney a day before the T20 Blast was a setback. Gurney had signed a contract only for limited-overs Cricket matches ahead of the 2019 season and was due to add some impetus to the squad alongside fellow limited-overs specialist Alex Hales ahead of the Blast.
“Harry would improve any T20 side in the world, so it’s a blow to lose him for this year’s tournament,” said Moores. “With the experience and expertise he’s gained from a global white-ball career, he’s become a real leader in our limited-overs dressing room.”
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Gurney is the leading wicket-taker across the last three T20 Blast seasons, with 63 wickets to his credit, and has been their go-to death bowler for a number of years. Moores, meanwhile, said that they will “continue tapping into Harry’s experience when it comes to our tactical discussions and advising our bowlers”.
Gurney’s absence reduces the Knight Riders’ count of foreign players to seven in their squad of 23. However, it is understood that they have finalised a replacement and will announce the name soon.