A student who lost his sight at the age of 20 has won a place in the England cricket squad for the 2002 Blind Cricket World Cup.

Andy Dalby-Welsh will travel to India at the end of this month to play for his country.

Four years ago, Andy was a keen footballer who played for his university team. He was about to take a free kick in the middle of a match when his eyesight suddenly blurred.

By the afternoon he was unable to read the blackboard in his lecture and found he could see nothing at all if he held his hand up in front of one eye.

Andy, 24, a final year social policy student at Sussex University, is now registered as blind.

He has a genetic condition called Leber's optic neuropathy, which has deteriorated to leave him with only limited peripheral vision.

At first, the student thought his dreams of sporting success had been shattered. He said: "When I found out the problem was permanent, I was gobsmacked.

"I just kept thinking about all the things I would never be able to do again. It felt surreal, like it couldn't really be happening.

"I think possibly my brain shut down a bit so I wouldn't realise the full extent of what had happened. Even so, I was pretty devastated about the idea of never playing football again."

Andy had to leave his degree course at Birmingham University and retrain, teaching himself new skills in IT and touch typing.

Now Andy, of Tisbury Road, Hove, has managed to adapt to his visual impairment.

He is studying for another degree, living independently and getting on with his life.

But until a few months ago he never dreamed he would be representing his country at cricket, playing India, South Africa, Bangladesh, Australia, Pakistan and Sri Lanka for the title of world champions.

In blind cricket, the ball is white and plastic with ball bearings inside so the batsman can hear it. The bowler warns the batsman when he is about to begin his run-up and bowl. Each team must have a minimum of four blind players and the rest must be visually impaired.

Andy said: "I used to play cricket when I was at school in Hove Park and I played for the Preston Nomads too. But football was always the sport I loved best. I liked cricket but I didn't think of it as 'my' sport.

"When I heard there was going to be a Sussex cricket squad for blind and visually impaired people, though, I thought I would give it a go.

"The world cup team was selected in August and I was placed on the reserve list, which I was pretty happy with. When they said I was on the actual team and I would be going to India, I was well chuffed."

Andy, who grew up in Hangleton, Hove, said retraining to play cricket using hearing rather than sight had been a challenge.

He said: "It's difficult to relearn how to play something when you can't see. I need to use my ears more, I think, but I'm learning. I think it's possibly easier to listen well if you have been visually impaired all your life.

"Things might be difficult sometimes but I have also had opportunities I would never have had otherwise - like the chance to play cricket for England. I can't believe it's really happening. It's amazing."