Pune Warriors distressed, Graeme Smith to miss IPL

02 April, 2012

Pune Warriors seem to be in a fix as after Yuvraj Singh's unavailability due to his failing health,..

THE IPL is set to start from April 4, where players from all around the globe would mark their presence in the much awaited extravaganza. Sahara Pune Warriors, who have already received a major setback with Yuvraj’s absence, received yet another setback with Graeme Smith’s withdrawal from IPL, as he is set to undergo an ankle surgery, reports Indian Express. Sometime back, Pune Warriors had hogged the limelight with their standoff against the BCCI, which almost made Pune quit IPL.

Graeme Smith would be missed by Pune, as his experience in the highest level of the game would have come handy guiding youngsters of the team. Along with this, his exploits in the opening overs of the game with his willow will be sight that the entire IPL crowd would miss. The expected recovery time for the player is somewhere between 8 – 10 weeks. The player would also not want to come back early and aggravate the situation, keeping in mind the international fixtures that South Africa is scheduled to play in the near future.

The Aussie captain, Michael Clarke has been roped in as a replacement for Yuvraj Singh, which would make their team strong. But, do they have enough time to find a replacement for Smith? If yes, they need to look out for players who could fit into their scheme of things.

In case, they do not bring any player as his replacement, they have several openers in the team, such as Ganguly, Ryder, Uthappa, Tamim Iqbal etc. But, none of them pose such an imposing threat as Smith does at the crease. To find a quality player like Smith could be a daunting task. Those are huge boots to fill. Many may argue, Ryder would be the perfect player, but Smith’s consistency and discipline is hard to match. No matter what, Sahara Pune Warriors have to take his absence in their stride and play the game, which is bigger than any individual.