Uncapped Indian fast bowler Mohsin Khan will be a key absentee in the Lucknow Super Giants' line-up for majority of the 2023 season as he recovers from a left shoulder injury. ESPNcricinfo has learned that Mohsin, who was among the best bowlers last IPL, underwent surgery to remove blood clots in his bowling shoulder last year and is yet to resume bowling.
Mohsin is understood to have experienced discomfort late into the 2022 season and has not bowled since last IPL. He travelled to the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru and subsequently had the blood clots removed surgically. The left-arm fast bowler from Uttar Pradesh is currently part of the Super Giants' preparatory camp in Lucknow. It is understood that while Mohsin has been batting in the nets, he is not ready to start bowling again because he is still strengthening his bowling shoulder.
Super Giants, who finished third in their maiden IPL season last year, remain optimistic and expect Mohsin to start bowling in the second half of the IPL. While the franchise picked Saurashtra and India left-arm seamer Jaydev Unadkat as a ready replacement at the IPL auction last December, they kept Mohsin in the squad and is understood to have supported him throughout the rehab phase.
Super Giants had entrusted Mohsin with the most challenging task: bowling in the powerplay and death. He had a shaky start to IPL 2022, leaking 18 runs in two wicketless overs against Gujarat Titans in Super Giants' first IPL game and was subsequently benched for the rest of the first half of the season. But once he returned, he made an impact in virtually each of the eight matches he played, including Eliminator against Royal Challengers Bangalore at Eden Gardens, where his 1 for 25 in four overs was the joint-most economical spell in the game.
In terms of impact per match measured by ESPNcricnfo's Smart Stats, Mohsin even pipped Rajasthan Royals' Jos Buttler, last season's leading run-getter, with a score of 58.4. Smart Stats takes into account match context for each ball bowled and it was here that Mohsin made the telling impact. His 4 for 16 against Delhi Capitals and 3 for 20 against Kolkata Knight Riders featured in the list of top-five highest impact points for a bowling performance last IPL.
In his last eight matches, Mohsin conceded 12.78 runs per wicket and 5.77 per over. Among the 33 bowlers who bowled at least 20 overs in that period, none had a better average or economy rate. Overall in the 2022 season, no bowler had a better economy in the powerplay than his 5.25 while only four other bowlers did better than his 8.62 at the death (minimum qualification: eight overs for each).