MELBOURNE, 20 January 2004 — Sachin Tendulkar has an injured ankle and is a doubt for India’s one-day match against Zimbabwe in Brisbane today, according to India captain Saurav Ganguly.
Tendulkar, the leading runscorer in One-Day International cricket, stroked a delightful 86 from 95 balls in India’s 19-run win over Australia, the other team involved in the series, in Brisbane on Sunday.
The right-hander twisted his ankle pushing off for a run early in his innings on Sunday, but the injury is not considered serious, team physiotherapist Andrew Liepus told reporters yesterday.
Opener Virender Sehwag (shoulder) and leading paceman Ajit Agarkar (calf) missed Sunday’s game and have also been ruled out of the Zimbabwe match.
“I sure will be opening, but we will have to wait and see who comes out as my partner,” said Ganguly, who promoted himself to opener in Sehwag’s absence on Sunday, scoring 18 in a partnership of 37 with Tendulkar.
While Zimbabwe are without a point after three matches in the triangular series, captain Heath Streak said he had been encouraged after watching India’s match against Australia.
Waqar to Help Shabbir Correct Bowling Action
Former Pakistan captain Waqar Younis is to advise fast bowler Shabbir Ahmed, who is on report for a suspect bowling action, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said yesterday.
“We have a panel of bowling experts also to look into such cases. But we feel Waqar is the best person in this situation to help Shabbir,” PCB chief executive Rameez Raja told Reuters.
Shabbir was reported for a suspect bowling action by umpires Darrell Hair and Billy Bowden after they reviewed footage of the fifth and final One-Day International against New Zealand at Wellington on Saturday.
The 27-year-old was reported twice by International Cricket Council (ICC) match officials in 1999 after one-day tournaments in Toronto and Sharjah.
