Ishan Kishan Sustains Back Sprain During India Nets Ahead Of Afghanistan T20Is

India have suffered an injury scare ahead of their T20I series against Afghanistan after Ishan Kishan appeared to hurt his back during a practice session on Friday, September 11.

Kishan had only recently joined the Indian camp after leading East Zone to the Duleep Trophy title, but his preparations for the upcoming series were cut short following the incident at the nets.

The wicketkeeper-batter was facing Navdeep Saini, who was bowling as a net bowler, when the pacer delivered a short ball that climbed sharply towards him. Kishan attempted to get out of the way of the delivery but appeared to hurt his back while ducking underneath it.

The left-hander immediately looked in discomfort and remained on his haunches for a few minutes. India physio Kamlesh Jain quickly attended to him before Kishan eventually left the nets.

Kishan was later seen holding the back of his waist and did not return to batting, raising concerns over his availability for India's opening T20I against Afghanistan, which is scheduled for Sunday.

The severity of the injury is not yet known. Kishan is expected to be given adequate rest, with his condition likely to be assessed over the next 24 hours before the team takes a call on his availability.

The injury scare comes after Kishan's impressive run in the Duleep Trophy final. He smashed 270 in East Zone's first innings against South Zone before following it up with 80 in the second innings, playing a major role in his team's title triumph.

Kishan had also appeared to be in fine rhythm during Friday's training session before the back issue brought his practice to an abrupt end. He was particularly aggressive against the spinners, repeatedly clearing the ropes with his attacking strokeplay.

India will now await further updates on Kishan's condition, with the team facing a race against time to determine whether the in-form batter will be fit to take the field against Afghanistan.