PRABHAKAR_INJURED_13DEC94

Prabhakar out of action with nose fracture

The delivery from West Indies skipper Courtney Walsh that struck Indian opener Manoj Prabhakar on the face in the final test has left Prabhakar with a fractured nose and ruled him out of action for one month.

A spokesman for the medical team which examined Prabhakar said on Wednesday his nasal bone was fractured by the blow on Tuesday.

The blow caused a cut which required three stitches before he could be moved to hospital for an x-ray.

Doctors have ruled out Prabhakar`s chances of playing cricket for at least a month, the spokesman said.

India do not play any international matches during this period but the domestic first-class season has begun.

Prabhakar has been plagued by injury this year. In February he returned home from a New Zealand tour with an ankle injury. He was also ruled unfit for the Australasia Cup limited-overs tournament in Sharjah in April.

He failed a fitness test conducted by English county Warwickshire for whom he had signed to play this year for one season.

Warwickshire replaced him with West Indian Brian Lara, who went on a record breaking spree.