NEW DELHI: India batsman Shikhar Dhawan has been ruled out of the ODIs against the West Indies after sustaining a “deep cut” to his left knee, a statement said on Wednesday.

Opener Mayank Agarwal will replace Dhawan, who injured himself while batting during the domestic Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T20 championship, the Board of Control for Cricket in India said.

“The BCCI medical team feels that while Dhawan’s stitches are off and his wound is healing gradually, he still needs some more time before he regains full match fitness,” the governing body said.

According to The Hindu, Dhawan “made a dive to return to his crease when a piece of wood in his batting pad pierced his knee and made a deep cut”.

India play three ODIs against the West Indies on Dec 15 (Chennai), Dec 18 (Visakhapatnam) and Dec 22 (Cuttack).

Published in Dawn, December 12th, 2019