Karnataka speedster Prasidh Krishna added to Indian squad for fourth Test against England
London, Sep 1: Karnataka speedster Prasidh Krishna, who has been a standby player with the Indian team for the past three months, was on Wednesday added to the main squad ahead of the fourth Test against England here.
The decision is an indication that Prasidh could be in line for a first XI call-up either at the Oval or in Manchester with the team management keen to monitor the workload of frontline pacers Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj and Mohammed Shami.
"The All-India Senior Selection Committee - based on the request of the team management - has added fast bowler Prasidh Krishna to India's squad for the fourth Test," BCCI secretary Jay Shah stated in a release.
However, bowling coach Bharat Arun maintained that Krishna's inclusion was a "precautionary" measure.
"He (Prasidh) has been included in the team, mainly because, considering all the workload management issues an...there is nothing more to it than that," Arun said at the virtual press conference before the fourth Test starting here on Thursday.
"So Ishant's (Sharma) form was a bit of concern, I think, but we have things sorted out. But Prasidh Krishna is just you know, a precautionary inclusion," added Arun.
The 25-year-old has played only nine first-class games with 34 wickets in his kitty. Earlier this year, he played three ODI matches at home against the same opposition, taking six wickets.
The five-match India-England series is currently locked 1-1.
India's squad for the fourth Test: Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (captain), Ajinkya Rahane (vice-captain), Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), R. Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma, Mohd. Shami, Md. Siraj, Shardul Thakur, Umesh Yadav, Wriddhiman Saha (wicket-keeper), Abhimanyu Easwaran, Prithvi Shaw, Suryakumar Yadav, Prasidh Krishna.
Standby player: Arzan Nagwaswalla.
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SGPC writes to Mann, seeks ban on 'Emergency' in Punjab a day before release
Amritsar, Jan 16 (PTI): The SGPC on Thursday wrote to Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, seeking a ban on the release of Kangana Ranaut's movie 'Emergency' saying it "tarnishes" the image of Sikhs and "misrepresents" history.
Actor and BJP MP Ranaut's 'Emergency' is slated to release in cinemas on January 17.
In the letter to Mann, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee chief Harjinder Singh Dhami expressed strong objection to Ranaut's film.
Dhami said that if the film is released in Punjab, it will spark "outrage and anger" in the Sikh community and therefore it is the responsibility of the government to ban its release in the state.
The SGPC, an apex gurdwara body, had earlier also protested the film.
"It has come to our attention that the movie 'Emergency' produced by BJP MP Kangana Ranaut is going to be released on 17th January 2025 in cinemas in different cities of Punjab and the tickets have also started to be booked," its letter to Mann read.
Dhami said the SGPC had also protested the release of the movie in a letter to the Punjab Chief Secretary on November 14 last year.
"But it is sad that the Punjab government has not taken any step till now. If this film is released on January 17, 2025, then it is natural to create outrage and anger in the Sikh world," the current letter read.
Dhami said the SGPC will submit a letter also to all the deputy commissioners in Punjab, seeking a ban on the film in the state.
The SGPC denounced the "character assassination" of Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, the Khalistani militant killed in 1984 in a military operation.
"If this film is released in Punjab, we will be forced to strongly oppose it at the state level," Dhami said.
In August last year, the SGPC sent a legal notice to the producers of the 'Emergency' film, alleging that it "misrepresented" the character and history of Sikhs, and asked them to remove the objectionable scenes depicting "anti-Sikh" sentiments.
In the notice, the producers of the film, including Kangana Ranaut, were asked to remove the trailer released on August 14 from all public and social media platforms and tender a written apology to the Sikh community.
The SGPC objected to film writing separate letters to the Minister of Information and Broadcasting and the Central Board of Film Certification.
