Team India's star all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja was ruled out of the first T20 match against Australia. In the last over of India's innings, Mitchell Starc's short-pitched delivery hit Jadeja's helmet after which he was ruled out of the match under the ICC rules of concussion. Jadeja, who just before getting hit on his head was already limping, was replaced by 'Concussion Substitute' Yuzvendra Chahal in the second innings.
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BCCI took to Twitter to inform that the medical team is investigating Jadeja to know how serious is the concussion. At the same time, Australia coach Justin Langer was seen involved in an argument with ICC match referee David Boon regarding the decision to approve Chahal as a concussion substitute.
"Ravindra Jadeja was hit on the helmet in the final over of the first innings of the first T20I. Yuzvendra Chahal will take the field in the 2nd innings as a concussion substitute. Jadeja is currently being assessed by the BCCI Medical Team," the BCCI said in a statement on Twitter.
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Chahal bowled brilliantly in the match as he took 3 wickets for just 25 runs in his 4 overs. The sensational leggie was also adjudged man of the match for his remarkable bowling. Many people raised questions about whether the concussion replacement protocol was followed for Ravindra Jadeja. Some say that when Mitchell Starc's short ball hit Jadeja on the helmet, neither the physio examined him nor the helmet was replaced.
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Ind vs Aus T20, Concussion Substitute | Here's What the captains had to say!
Virat Kohli: There were no plans of having Yuzi in the game. Concussion replacements are a strange thing. Today, it worked for us. Yuzi showed character to squeeze the opponents. I thought they had a great start. They were cruising. The batters offered us a few wickets. That is T20 cricket for you. In Australia, you need to play hard and show intensity till the end. He batted beautifully in the last game. Natarajan looks like he can improve a lot. Chahar bowled well as well. Chahal got us back in the game. Hardik's catch was a game changer as well.
Aaron Finch: The injury got progressively worse as the game went on (about his injury to the hip). Their doctor had ruled Jadeja out due to concussion. You can't be challenging a medical expert's opinion. We probably leaked too may runs at the death. Then while chasing, we didn't hit too many boundaries in the 6-over period.
ICC law regarding concussion subs says: "The ICC Match Referee should ordinarily approve a Concussion Replacement Request if the replacement is a like-for-like player whose inclusion will not excessively advantage his team for the remainder of the match. In assessing whether the nominated Concussion Replacement should be considered a like-for-like player, the ICC Match Referee should consider the likely role the concussed player would have played during the remainder of the match and the normal role that would be performed by the nominated Concussion Replacement."