Gone are the days when youth was the flavour of the town. India's cricket selectors did a volte-face on Thursday when they brought in seniors to replace youngsters for the ODI series in Sri Lanka and Champions Trophy.
Not surprisingly have Sachin Tendulkar, Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh made a comeback, and Robin Uthappa, Piyush Chawla, Yusuf Pathan and Manpreet Singh Gony made way for them.
But what's surprising is the inclusion of Delhi's 19-year-old batting star Virat Kohli, ahead of Uthappa, who has never really got a long enough run, or many overs, to prove his worth.
Kohli played a stellar role in India's Under-19 World Cup victory, scoring 235 runs at 42.16, and was the second highest run scorer for India in the Emerging Players' Tournament in Australia last month, scoring 204 runs in five matches at an average of 51.
The selectors seem to have run out of patience in Chawla's case, and quite rightly so. The young leggie struggled in the Bangladesh tri-series and Asia Cup, and after Pragyan Ojha's impressive debut, it was certain he would be axed.
There were also question marks over Irfan Pathan's recent performances, but his all-round abilities gave him the edge over others. However, his elder brother, Yusuf, the Indian Premier League's biggest success story, got no mercy. After a lacklustre showing in the seven matches he played for India, he was promptly shown the door.
Irfan and fast bowling partner Praveen Kumar will need to come up with something special in the coming weeks. Both struggled in Bangladesh and Pakistan, where they had to contend with docile pitches, clearly underlining their lack of variety and ability to adjust.
With the fast bowling talent India has its disposal at the moment, even one small mistake can prove costly for the duo.
Suresh Raina, as expected, retains his place after an amazing batting display in the Asia Cup. He along with Rohit Sharma and Yuvraj Singh take the Indian fielding to another level altogether while also adding a touch of charisma to the middle order.
Parthiv Patel has been included for the five-match series in Sri Lanka, but it remains to be seen whether he will get a chance to play.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni is back refreshed after a good break from cricket and will no doubt be keen to get much of the action.
Ishant Sharma gets a deserved break, with the selectors obviously keen to preserve him for the Champions Trophy. However, it will be a big embarrassment for the selectors if Munaf Patel dishes out a few match-winning spells in Sri Lanka and then has to make way for Ishant.
The team is a good mixture of youth and experience and should start favourites in Sri Lanka.
Squad for Sri Lanka ODIs:
Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain), Yuvraj Singh, Sachin Tendulkar, Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina, Virat Kohli, Parthiv Patel, Irfan Pathan, Praveen Kumar, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, RP Singh, Munaf Patel, Pragyan Ojha.
Squad for Champions Trophy:
Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captaom), Yuvraj Singh (vice-captain), Sachin Tendulkar, Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina, Virat Kohli, Parthiv Patel, Irfan Pathan, Praveen Kumar, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, RP Singh, Pragyan Ojha, Ishant Sharma.
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