M A I N   N E W S

A debut too far for Ishant

Mumbai, December 27
Teenaged paceman Ishant Sharma would not fly to South Africa after all.

On a day of flip-flops when the BCCI first said the 18-year-old Delhi fast bowler would leave for South Africa on December 31, prompting even a happy reaction from the paceman himself, came the final word from the Chairman of Selectors Dilip Vengsarkar.

Vengsarkar, currently in South Africa, said it had been decided finally to allow Sharma to concentrate on domestic cricket for the moment.

“Initially Ishant was being considered to be drafted into the Indian squad. However, considering his Ranji Trophy schedule for Delhi, it has now been decided not to have him fly down to Cape Town and instead, allow him to concentrate in his domestic first class matches,” he said in a statement.

Ishant was being considered as a replacement for an out of form Irfan Pathan who will head back for home tomorrow morning, taking a flight to Mumbai via Johannesburg. It was a bizarre turn of events for the Ishant who is currently playing Ranji Trophy match against Saurashtra in Rajkot. — PTI