Sachin will play IPL-5, BCCI and Mumbai Indians

The Indian Premier League franchise, Mumbai Indians, and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) have reacted swiftly to the reports claiming MI skipper Sachin Tendulkar is a doubtful starter for the upcoming season five of the Twenty20 league due to a recurring toe injury, saying that the Master Blaster was perfectly fine and will be available to the franchise for the tournament.

Tendulkar’s availability for the latest edition of the money-spinning Indian Premier League, commencing on April 4, became a big question mark after a BCCI official revealed on Wednesday morning that the iconic India batsman and the Mumbai Indian skipper, Sachin Tendulkar has gone to London to consult a specialist about his toe injury adding that the injured toe might require a surgery.

"Yes, Sachin Tendulkar has gone to London for consultation about his toe injury,” sources from inside the BCCI had claimed on Wednesday . “He has been playing with this injury for long. It is not sure when he will return as even a surgery may be needed to correct it," the source added further.

A surgery would have meant no Tendulkar for Mumbai Indians in the entire IPL-5. However, the Mumbai Indians management refuted the reports of surgery saying that Sachin had gone to London for just a routine check up of his recurring old injury. The franchise further added that the prolific batsman will participate in the training camp of Mumbai team, starting two days later.

Tendulkar’s toe injury is almost a decade old and it resurfaced in the one-day leg of India’s win-less tour of England last year, forcing him to fly home without playing even a single ODI of the five-match series.

The 38-year-old Indian batting prodigy was then advised a four week rest, ruling him out of the home ODI series against the Poms followed by Champions League Twenty20, which his IPL franchise Mumbai Indians had won. In Sachin’s absence, his Indian teammate Harbhajan Singh stood in as the MI skipper in the Champions League.

He made a comeback to the competitive cricket during the home Test series against West Indies, before opting to rest in the ODI series against the on-tour Caribbean side. He then went to Australia with the Indian team and played in the Test as well as tri-nation ODI series, before being picked up in the squad for the recently concluded Asia Cup tournament in Bangladesh, where he notched up his much awaited hundredth ton against the hosts at Shere Bangla.

The fifth edition of IPL gets underway at the M A Chidambaram Stadium on April 4, with Mumbai Indians playing defending champions Chennai Super Kings in the tournament opener.