Paul Valthaty, 27, the Mumbai batsman who came to the limelight for his power hitting during the last IPL, said he is looking forward to playing for Himachal Pradesh in the upcoming Ranji season.
Published: Sep 15, 2011, 07:08 PM (IST)
Edited: Sep 15, 2011, 07:08 PM (IST)
Paul Valthaty scored 463 runs and took seven wickets in the fourth edition of the IPL © AFP
Dharamsala: Sep 15, 2011
Paul Valthaty, 27, the Mumbai batsman who came to the limelight for his power hitting during the last IPL, said he is looking forward to playing for Himachal Pradesh in the upcoming Ranji season.
HPCA secretary Vishal Marwaha conformed last month that along with Valthaty, former India wicketkeeper Ajay Ratra (29) ,too, recently decided to join Himachal for the upcoming domestic season.
Having represented Goa for nearly four years, Ratra accepted HPCA’s offer and will be leading their cause to gain promotion from the Plate to the Elite group.
Marwah also said that Tamil Nadu’s S Sriram (35) have also shifted to Himachal to add further thrust to the team.
Ratra was in talks with HPCA secretary Vishal Marwaha and after analysing the current domestic scenario, decided in favour of HPCA.
“Yes I had an offer from HPCA and after considering many factors, I finally took the decision to shift to Himachal. It is a better state than Goa in terms of advancement in cricket and it is also close to Faridabad, my hometown, and hence easy for me to commute,” said Ratra.
Valthaty said: “Personally leaving Mumbai will be tough, after all my entire life has been based here (Mumbai), including my cricket. But when I got an offer from Himachal, I decided to move on.” (PTI)
