'It's a slow process': England's Liam Livingstone hopeful to be fit ahead of IPL 2023

Star England all-rounder Liam Livingstone has said that he is hopeful of being fit ahead of the IPL 2023 season, having suffered multiple recent injuries. The 29-year-old missed several matches last year due to issues with his ankle and knees. The 2023 edition of the IPL will begin on March 20.

'I am heading in the right direction': Livingstone on the recovery process

While speaking to Sky Sports after the full fixtures of The Hundred were announced, Liam Livingstone said, "I am recovering from a knee injury from that one [the Pakistan tour] and was carrying an ankle problem during the World Cup. I am just trying to get those sorted, it's a slow process at the moment. I am heading in the right direction. Hopefully, I'll be back in the next couple of months."

Speaking of the ankle injury he suffered during The Hundred last year that ruled him out for the most part of 2022, Livingstone added, "It was disappointing [getting injured during The Hundred]. I started the tournament not great and finally got some runs at The Oval."

"Unfortunately, I had a bit of a freak incident and hurt my ankle. It was incredibly disappointing to have got injured at the time, especially when it's the crunch time of a tournament," explained the 29-year-old.

Speaking of how he hopes to recover in time to play in IPL 2023, Livingstone added, "It's going to be a long few weeks building up from rehab, and hopefully I'll be back around the IPL time so I can get back into the swing of things." Punjab Kings (PBKS) will hope that Livingstone recovers in time for the tournament, having roped in several top players to build a star-studded squad.

While they did release both captain, Mayank Agarwal and coach Anil Kumble, they did make some blockbuster signings by getting the likes of England all-rounder Sam Curran and Zimbabwe all-rounder Sikandar Raza into the team.

PBKS' squad

Retained players: Shikhar Dhawan, Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Chahar, Arshdeep Singh, Harpreet Brar, Raj Angad Bawa, Prabhsimran Singh, Rishi Dhawan, Jitesh Sharma, Baltej Singh Dhanda, Atharva Taide, Liam Livingstone, Kagiso Rabada, Jonny Bairstow, Nathan Ellis, Bhanuka Rajapakse

Players bought: Sam Curran (England) - INR 18.50 crores, Sikandar Raza (Zimbabwe) - INR 50 lakhs, Harpreet Bhatia (India) - INR 40 lakhs, Vidwath Kaverappa (India) - INR 20 lakhs, Mohit Rathee (India) - INR 20 lakhs, Shivam Singh (India) - INR 20 lakhs