As expected, former India cricket captain Sourav Ganguly has been reinstated in the one-day team following his impressive show in the recent three-Test series in South Africa.
The national selectors, who met in Rajkot on Friday to pick the 30 probables for the next World Cup in the Caribbean as well as a 15-member squad for the first two One-Day Internationals against the West Indies at home just before the quadrennial showpiece event, were "unanimous" in their decision to choose Ganguly for both.
"If you see Ganguly's performance in one-day cricket, it is excellent. He has done well in South Africa also, in Test matches, and hence we have picked him," said chairman of selectors Dilip Vengsarkar.
Not surprisingly, wretchedly out-of-form Virender Sehwag has been omitted from the first two ODIs against the West Indies.
"Sehwag is a fine batsman. He has proved his ability on many occasions. He has been given enough opportunities to regain his form. But he has not delivered the way a batsman of his stature should. He has to go back and sort out his batting problems. I think he will be in very good form again.
He is an experienced player and I think this break will do him good," remarked Vengsarkar.
The chairman categorically said that both Mohammad Kaif and Dinesh Mongia, who played in the one-day series in South Africa, have been "dropped" for the two ODIs, though they have figured in the probables' list. Injured Munaf Patel has also not been considered for the first two ODIs against the West Indies.
Talking about Pathan, who also has not figured in the team for the first two ODI versus West Indies, the chairman said, "He is out of form. He has to bowl well. I am sure a fine player like him won't take too long to regain his form."
Interestingly, the hard-hitting Karnataka batsman Robin Uthappa, who played three ODIs in 2006, has been recalled following his outstanding performance in the ongoing Ranji Trophy season in which he has hit 4 hundreds.
Haryana all-rounder Joginder Sharma has also been included for the ODIs against the West Indies. Among the young brigade, promising Saurashtra batsman Cheteshwar Pujara, Baroda left-arm spinner Rajesh Pawar, Delhi seamer Ishant Sharma and Mumbai all-rounder Rohit Sharma have also been included among the probables.
Team for the first two ODIs against the West Indies: Rahul Dravid (captain), Sachin Tendulkar (v/c), Gautam Gambhir, Sourav Ganguly, Robin Uthappa, Joginder Sharma, Ajit Agarkar, M S Dhoni, R P Singh, Dinesh Karthik, Suresh Raina, Zaheer Khan, S Sreesanth, Ramesh Powar, Harbhajan Singh.
Probables for the World Cup: Rahul Dravid, Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Yuvraj Singh, Mohammad Kaif, Gautam Gambhir, Sourav Ganguly, Robin Uthappa, Joginder Sharma, Ajit Agarkar, M S Dhoni, R P Singh, Dinesh Karthik, Suresh Raina, Zaheer Khan, S Sreesanth, Romesh Pawar, Harbhajan Singh, Irfan Pathan, Munaf Patel, Anil Kumble, Dinesh Mongia, VRV Singh, Parthiv Patel, VVS Laxman, Rohit Sharma, Ishant Sharma, Cheteswar Pujara, S Badrinath, Rajesh Pawar.
