Vijay Shankar to miss Syed Mushtaq Ali knockouts

CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu will be without the services of allrounder Vijay Shankar for the knockout stages of the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament. Shankar, the team’s vice-captain, is set to tie the knot on January 27.
The 29-year-old is expected to return home from Kolkata once the league phase of the tournament concludes. “Shankar will be flying back to Chennai on January 19.TN’s final league clash is against Bengal on January 18. So, we will have Shankar playing the first five games,” a source close to the development told TOI on Wednesday.
Shankar has already informed the TNCA and selectors about his unavailability. It is learned that the team think-tank is in no hurry to name a vice-captain for the knockouts.
“We have selected Shankar for the job and as the tournament progresses a call will be taken as to who will be the vice-captain (for the knockouts),” a TNCA official mentioned. It is clear that the TNCA will not have a replacement for Shankar in the knockout stages. “Due to the prevailing quarantine restrictions, we are not keen to send in a new player into the squad and will manage with the current squad in the knockout stages,” said the TNCA official.
TN to start practice on Friday: TN will commence their practice sessions in Kolkata once their quarantine period concludes on January 7 (Thursday). The team underwent their third covid-19 test on Wednesday afternoon and the results are expected to be out on Thursday. TN, part of the Elite B group, will open their campaign against Jharkhand on January 10.