Cricket

Test team for Sri Lanka: Review

The team to play Sri Lanka in the upcoming three test series has been selected. And while some of the usual players do find their usual place in the squad, there are a few names missing, or even included, that raise a few eyebrows and thus are quite debatable at the end of the day.

Gautam Gambhir expectedly makes a return to the Test squad and barring some major debacle should stay put for sometime. He will be partnered by Sehwag, who has been handed the vice captaincy. Now this is sure to raise some eyebrows in Jharkhand where a certain MS Dhoni will be resting. Should things go wrong and one can’t tell when they do in Indian cricket, then Dhoni will have Sehwag and Yuvraj both lurking near by. The big point is that the Viru-Dhoni relationship is already on the ropes.

Talking more about wicket keepers, Parthiv Patel and Dinesh Karthik find themselves in, though it will be interesting to see which of them will get the nod. Karthik might also back up as the third opener in case something happens to the regular two and sadly this is the reason why Akash Chopra will miss out even though he had a fine season in domestic cricket.

The biggest name to miss out from the squad is Yuvraj, whose fortunes have seen a sea of change from last year, when he could do no wrong to the present, where he does nothing right. Lack of runs in Australia cost him dearly and thus, he will be out of test action for quite some time, and that is also why Rohit Sharma must do well in the limited chances he gets. While Tendulkar is secure, the likes of Dravid, Ganguly and Laxman need to perform consistently to stop themselves from continually looking behing their shoulders.

The bowling seems settled as Bhajji returns and will partner Kumble. Pragyan Ojha’s inclusion is primarily to get some variety but they could have gone in for Murali Karthik’s experience too. The pace department looks good on paper too with Zaheer set to return and partner Ishant, atleast for the first test. RP Singh manages to just about hold on to his place as Irfan misses out, while it will be interesting to see how fit Munaf Patel really is, given that Sreesanth is also out with side strains.

Tags: bhajji, dhoni, dravid, ganguly, Ishant, kumble, sachin, sehwag, Zaheer