Knee injury puts Rampaul out of Caribbean T20

A knee injury has ruled West Indies fast bowler Ravi Rampaul out of the Caribbean Twenty20 starting this weekend. Rampaul is expected to be sidelined for two to three weeks, and his place in the Trinidad & Tobago squad has been taken by quick bowler Rayad Emrit.

"After a medical assessment and an MRI scan, it was decided that he would not be fully fit for the tournament," T&T manager Omar Khan said, "and the recommendation is to rest him rather than taking a risk and playing him and he breaks down during the tournament which could put him out for a longer period of time."

T&T are defending champions of the Caribbean T20, and have a squad full of renowned players, including Dwayne Bravo, Kieron Pollard and Sunil Narine. Still, Khan said the absence of Rampaul will be a big loss. "It is a disappointment because Ravi is a West Indies bowler and he is one of our main bowlers in terms of opening the bowling and bowling at the death. We obviously have to make some adjustments and the technical staff will be looking at different strategies having lost Ravi as an option."

T&T open their campaign on Sunday against Jamaica, another of the frontrunners for the tournament.