CAB President furious at former RCB player for not answering call
A former Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) player has gone off the radar and is not picking up calls from anybody of his state team. Be it the president, the coaching staff, or his teammates, no one knows about his whereabouts or tentative return.
All-rounder Shahbaz Ahmed, who was traded to SRH from RCB ahead of the IPL 2024 Auction hasn't responded to any of the contact attempts made by the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) during his ongoing rehab at National Cricket Academy (NCA), according to Sportskeeda.
Playing through a lateral meniscus tear, the 29-year-old registered a deft century off 118 balls and took one wicket for 25 runs in Bengal's quarterfinal defeat to Haryana in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. The match on December 11 marked Shahbaz's final appearance for his state side. Following the fixture, he sought treatment at the NCA, where the situation took an unexpected turn.
It is now anticipated that he will be absent for the remaining four Ranji Trophy 2024 league matches and beyond.
CAB President left furious
Initially expected to rejoin the Bengal camp for the third, or at the latest, the fourth match of the Ranji season, Shahbaz's unexplained absence has raised concerns within the CAB. The state association was compelled to communicate with the NCA, but the report received did not alleviate the concerns of the CAB.
While recovery from a meniscus tear without surgery typically takes six to eight weeks, the CAB president expresses concern that Shahbaz Ahmed's recuperation is exceeding the expected timeline.
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“I don’t know what’s up with him. I had called him but he didn’t respond. I have also written back to NCA with some queries against its report. We are also cricketers and we know what injury takes how much time to heal. Shahbaz is what he is because of Bengal and he should also be there when Bengal need him,” CAB President Snehasish Ganguly said to Sportskeeda.
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