Rampaul wants medical clearance for one-dayers

Young West Indies pacer Ravi Rampaul will visit sports medicine specialist Dr Terry Ali tomorow in Port-of-Spain seeking a medical green light in order to join Trinidad and Tobago’s training squad for next month’s regional limited overs championship in Guyana. The former West Indies youth fast bowler had to cut short the recent tour of England with the regional senior team due to shin splints, and according to the chairman of the selection panel, Dudnath Ramkessoon, Rampaul will have to get clearance from the West Indies Cricket Board’s medical man in TT —  Dr Ali, before he can join the squad to prepare for the 2004 West Indies limited overs cricket championship.

Ramkessoon, a former West Indies youth captain, stated that Rampaul is an asset to the TT team, but will have to prove that he is fully fit and injury free before he can join the training squad.  Ramkessoon said attendance at the training and physical sessions has been good and the squad was bolstered by the presence on Sunday —  at the National Cricket Centre in  Balmain —  of wicket-keeper/batsman Denesh Ramdin, who led the West Indies to the runner-up spot in the 2004 ICC Youth World Cup in Bangladesh in March. Ramdin is back home after completing a professional stint in England, participating with Crawley Cricket Club in Division One of the Sussex Cricket League.  In his first season in England, Ramdin scored 1,026 runs and snared 39 dismissals behind the stumps including 28 catches and 11 stumpings. Ramkessoon added that he expects dropped West Indies opening batsman Daren Ganga, his younger brother Sherwin, opener Imran Jan and fast bowling allrounder Rayad Emrit to join the training squad later this week.

The players will contest two inter-squad matches this weekend.  Ramkessoon stressed the point that these are not trial matches. He stated that two fixed teams XS and White Oak will engage themselves on this weekend and September 18 and 19, following which the national team for the 2004 West Indies limited overs championship will be announced. He said that monetary incentives and prizes would be at stake in the four matches that will be sponsored by Angostura Limited.  The teams for this weekend matches will be named tomorrow.