|
No Place For Irfan Pathan , Virender Sehwag In Indian Test Team |
|
|
|
Written by Piyush Joshi
|
|
Thursday, 15 November 2007 |
|
Anil Kumble's first team as the Indian captain sprung no surprises today as Harbhajan Singh and Murali Kartik were included in the squad for the first two tests against Pakistan starting November 22.
Both the spinners have impressed in the One Day series so far and their inclusion in the squad will provide Kumble with a number of options in what are expected to be slow turning wickets in the series. Rahul Dravid retained his place in the test squad, after smashing a brilliant double century in the Ranji Trophy against Mumbai, along with Saurav Ganguly, Sachin Tendulkar and VVS Laxman.
However Virender Sehwag has not been included in spite of a brilliant record against the arch rivals. Sehwag has an average of more than 90 against Pakistan in the 9 matches played, including 309 in Multan. Gautam Gambhir, Ramesh Powar, Ranadeb Bose and Ishant Sharma have been dropped from the test squad.
While the veteran quartet of Tendulkar, Ganguly, Dravid and Laxman are expected to feature in the middle order, any hiccups would provide a chance for Yuvraj Singh who has been in terrific form throughout the year. The selectors have also named Mahendra Singh Dhoni as the vice captain for the series.
The first test starts on November 22 at the Feroz Shah Kotla in Delhi followed by matches at Eden Gardens and M.Chinnaswamy Stadium on November 30 and December 8 respectively.
Add as favourites (50)
Powered by AkoComment Tweaked Special Edition v.1.4.4 |