Injured Prior to miss rest of India series
London: Struggling England wicket-keeper Matt Prior stepped aside on Tuesday from national duty for the remainder of the series against India owing to poor form and injuries, a decision which triggered speculation of his international career being all but over. The 32-year-old’s decision came after England suffered a crushing 95-run defeat at the hands of the visitors at the Lord’s where he was again guilty of dropping a number of catches. The wicket-keeper batsman said he tore his quad before the first Test and apart from a hand injury an Achilles problem has forced him to take the decision. “As it stands now, I’ll miss three Test matches, and then I’ll do my utmost to get fit and ready for the back-end of the winter. It is a huge decision and not one I have taken lightly obviously, because I could have played my last game,” Prior said, announcing his decision. “I’m not doing justice to myself and more importantly the team and that is what matters first and foremost,” said Prior, who has struggled behind the wickets in this series. Jos Buttler was named as Prior’s replacement and will make his debut in the third Test match, which will begin on July 27. (PTI)
Ishant, Bhuvi climb ICC rankings chart
Dubai: India’s historic win at Lord’s, only their second at the home of cricket in 82 years, has seen Indian players Ishant Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Murali Vijay and Ajinkya Rahane make noticeable improvements in the latest ICC Test Player Rankings, released on Tuesday. Ishant, who took a match-winning seven-wicket haul in the team’s 95-run win in the first Test against England, jumped three places to return to the top-20 of the Test bowlers’ chart for the first time in three years. Ishant, who is now 20th, now trails off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin (11th), the highest-ranked India bowler, by 139 ratings points. The 24-year-old Kumar, in his maiden Test at Lord’s, returned with productive overall match figures of 6-103, with all his six scalps coming in the first innings. He has vaulted 12 places to claim 34th position with team-mate Ravindra Jadeja in 28th position. In the Test batting chart, Vijay rocketed 11 places to claim a career-best 19th spot following his contributions of 24 and 95 in the first and second innings respectively. Vijay, 30, is the third India batsman behind Cheteshwar Pujara (eighth) and Virat Kohli (14th) to feature inside the top 20, a list that is led by South Africa’s AB de Villiers. Rahane, 26, who scored a masterly 103 in the first innings, has gained 11 places on the table and is now sitting in the 35th position. India, who are ranked fourth in the Test team list led by Australia, play their second Test against the hosts in Southampton starting on July 27. (PTI)
Salgaocar start pre-season in earnest
Panaji: Salgaocar FC began their pre-season training two days back at Duler Stadium, Mapusa, under the watchful eyes of head coach Derrick Pereira. The Green and Whites have been able to retain the core of their squad that finished third in the 2013-14 I-League, with a couple of re-enforcements to key positions. The club has currently registered a total of 21 players and are confident of completing the remaining signings over the course of the next couple of weeks. Salgaocar continue to be busy in the transfer market with the latest additions to the squad being the Pune FC duo of Gurjinder Kumar and Othallo Tabia. Having released all the four foreigners that formed part of the squad last year, the club’s first foreign signing of the current season came in the form of midfield playmaker and talisman, Douhou Pierre, who also played for the Red Lizards last season. “All our recent signings from the Pune based club are players who’ve played under me in the past and I am confident of bringing out the best in them here at Salgaocar,” commented Derrick. The gaffer was visibly pleased at seeing most of his players looking fit and raring to go. The GFA charity match, the curtain raiser for the season is scheduled for August 17 with the Goa Pro League due to get underway the following day. “We are about four-weeks away from the commencement of the Pro League and I believe the matches will provide us with the ideal platform to assess ourselves ahead of the Federation Cup in December and the I-League due to begin in January,” the coach added. Besides the three signings, the club has also retained the services of hard-working winger Bikash Jairu, who joined the club in January on loan from Mumbai Tigers FC. (PTI)