Double blow for Team India as Ashwin, Rohit ruled out of Perth Test
Perth, Dec 13: India's premier spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and batsman Rohit Sharma have been ruled out of the second Test starting here on Friday, dealing a double blow to the visitors at a time when opener Prithvi Shaw is yet to recover from an ankle injury.
With the trio unavailable for selection, India included Hanuma Vihari, Ravindra Jadeja, Umesh Yadav and Bhuvneshwar Kumar in a 13-man squad announced on eve of the second Test.
While Shaw injured his ankle while fielding in the sole warm up game before the series opener, Ashwin suffered an abdominal strain and Rohit hurt his back during the first Test which India won by 31 runs.
"Prithvi Shaw is recovering well from his left ankle injury but still undergoing treatment. R Ashwin has a left-sided abdominal strain. He is receiving treatment at the moment. Rohit Sharma jarred his lower back while fielding in the 1st Test at Adelaide. He is undergoing treatment. He too is ruled out of the second Test," read a statement from the BCCI.
"The team management is closely monitoring these players and a call on their availability for the third Test will be taken at an appropriate time," it added.
Ashwin's unavailability is a big loss as he had taken a six-wicket haul at Adelaide to help India record their first win in a series opener in Australia.
Rohit, who made a Test comeback at the Adelaide Oval, was expected to retain his place in the eleven after scores of 37 and 1.
India's 13-man squad: Virat Kohli (captain), M Vijay, KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav.
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Trump says he ‘hasn’t even thought about’ continuing Iran ceasefire
Washington: US President Donald Trump has said he has not yet considered whether he would continue the ceasefire involving Iran, while also claiming the United States holds the advantage in negotiations.
Speaking to reporters, Trump said he was prepared to make a deal with “whoever is running the show” in Iran.
“They are fighting with each other, there’s tremendous infighting. They’re probably fighting for leadership in many cases. I think they’re fighting not to be leader because we knocked out two levels of leaders,” he said.
Trump added, “When they want they can call me. We have all the cards, we’ve won everything.”
Referring to ongoing negotiations, he said, “They gave us a paper that should’ve been better. And, interestingly, immediately when I cancelled it [envoy trip to Pakistan], within 10 minutes we got a new paper that was much better.”
“We talked about they will not have a nuclear weapon, very simple … They offered a lot, but not enough,” he added.
When asked whether he would continue the ceasefire, Trump replied, “I haven’t even thought about it.”
The remarks come as uncertainty remains over the future of the temporary truce and broader negotiations between Washington and Tehran.
