SYDNEY — Legendary batsman Viv Richards was Friday named as the latest recruit to the ranks of Shane Warne's Australian Twenty20 side, with the West Indian to mentor the Melbourne Stars. Warne, who will skipper the team in the domestic Big Bash League, was keen to have the man dubbed the “Master Blaster” onboard for their second season, and Richards said he was relishing getting involved. “I've been out of cricket for quite some time,” the 60-year-old told reporters at the Melbourne Cricket Ground where in 1984 he smashed 208 against Australia in a Test. “To be given an opportunity to come back to the scene of the crime, I'm very excited about that.” Richards said he would be very hands-on in his approach to mentoring. Richards, who is acknowledged as one of the greatest cricketers of the 20th century, said he liked what he saw when it came to Twenty20 cricket. “I myself would have been happy to have played some of the shots these guys do today,” he said. “But that's how time runs. Whatever period of time we had, I thoroughly enjoyed it. I never try to look behind me.” The Melbourne Star's chairman of selectors Ian Chappell said securing Richards' expertise was “a huge coup for the team”. Melbourne Stars chief executive Clint Cooper said the team had assembled one of the most star-studded T20 teams and coaching squads. It includes Australia's highest ever wicket-taker with 708 Test scalps in Warne as well as Sri Lankan Twenty20 star paceman Lasith Malinga and Australia's James Pattinson and David Hussey. Despite the impressive lineup, Richards joked he would be happy to take to the field if injuries demanded it. Sri Lanka loses Dilshan Sri Lanka Friday suffered a big blow when in-form opener Tillakaratne Dilshan was ruled out of the opening Test against New Zealand in Galle after failing to recover from a back injury. Dilshan, who also missed the last two matches of the recent ODI series against the tourists, was replaced by uncapped opening batsman Dimuth Karunaratne, 24. “Probably he (Dilshan) can manage while batting but on-the-field movements are still giving him problems, I guess,” Sri Lanka skipper Mahela Jayawardene said at a press conference on the eve of the Test. Sri Lanka has named three specialist spinners — Rangana Herath, Suraj Randiv and Tharindu Kaushal — in the squad, but Jayawardene hoped the pitch at the Galle International Stadium would also favor pacemen. New Zealand captain Ross Taylor conceded batting against spin would hold the key to his team's fortunes. — Agencies
