Parmar ruled out of Davis Cup tie

A knee injury has forced Arvind Parmar out of Great Britain's Davis Cup tie in Israel and left Alex Bogdanovic in line to take the second singles place.

Parmar picked up the injury last week and has failed to recover in time for the Europe/Africa Zone I tie, which begins in Tel Aviv on Friday. Bogdanovic looks set to take the second singles place alongside Greg Rusedski. GB captain Jeremy Bates could use 17-year-old Andrew Murray and David Sherwood in the doubles rubber. Bogdanovic and Murray both pulled out of tournaments last week through injury but are expected to be fit. Jamie Delgado and Lee Childs have been called into the squad in Tel Aviv as designated hitters for team practice but Bates has no plans to call either of them into his squad at present.

The unheralded Sherwood was the surprise inclusion when the squad was announced last week, and Bates said: "David has earned his place in this squad on the merit of his form and results over the last 12 months." The 6ft 4in Sherwood is ranked 264th in the world and the LTA have high hopes for him after Futures tournament wins in Wrexham and Edinburgh.

The Sheffield-born right-hander, aged 24, also reached another final in Plaisir, France, a week after making the semi-final in Mulhouse. Bates is glad to have Rusedski available after Tim Henman's retirement from Davis Cup tennis. "His wealth of experience is invaluable, particularly to the younger players and I know he will lead by example," Bates said. "We are looking forward to the tie. The squad are all in excellent form."
