South Africa in India (2009-10): Badrinath, Mithun in India squad
Friday, 29 January 2010
S Badrinath, the Tamil Nadu batsman, was virtually assured of a Test debut after he was one of only six specialist batsmen named in the 15-man squad for the first Test against South Africa, according to website cricinfo.
During their tour of Bangladesh, India lost Rahul Dravid and Yuvraj Singh to injuries, but the selectors named just one batting replacement. The squad also featured Karnataka fast bowler Abhimanyu Mithun as replacement for the injured Sreesanth, and Bengal wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha for Dinesh Karthik, dropped presumably for his irresponsible shot and a duck in the Chittagong Test. VVS Laxman, who injured his hand while going for a slip catch in Chittagong, was deemed fit.
The long injury list meant the selectors picked the squad only for the first Test, which begins in Nagpur on February 6. They will reassess the fitness of players and the performance of the replacements before naming the side for the second Test. A BCCI release, however, all but ruled out Dravid and Yuvraj of the second Test as well. Dravid, who fractured his cheekbone after getting hit by a Shahadat Hossain bouncer in Mirpur, was advised three weeks' rest, the release said. It also said that Yuvraj was out for the whole series. Kris Srikkanth, the chairman of selectors, though, said they would reassess the injury status after the first Test.
"Dravid was very keen to play but the doctors have advised him rest as a precautionary measure," Srikkanth said. "We have selected the best possible team considering the number of injuries that the Indian team have suffered in the recent series.
Saha's selection, ahead of Karthik, was prompted by the back problems MS Dhoni has suffered of late. Saha was signed up by Kolkata Knight Riders in the inaugural edition of the IPL, and managed 318 runs in five games at 39.75 in 2009-10 Ranji season. "Dhoni had a few niggles during the Bangladesh tour and had even missed the first Test. Even in the ODIs he had a few problems with his fitness, so we have included Wriddhiman Saha as a back up. If in the morning of the match, Dhoni is unavailable, we will have Saha as a replacement," Srikkanth said.
India squad for first Test: MS Dhoni (capt/wk), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, S Badrinath, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Amit Mishra, Pragyan Ojha, Ishant Sharma, M Vijay, Sudeep Tyagi, Abhimanyu Mithun, Wriddhiman Saha.
Board President's XI: Abhinav Mukund, Parthiv Patel (wk), Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma (capt), Manish Pandey, Cheteshwar Pujara, Abhishek Nayar, Piyush Chawla, R Ashwin, R Vinay Kumar, Abhimanyu Mithun, Shikhar Dhawan, Umesh Yadav, Manpreet Gony.
During their tour of Bangladesh, India lost Rahul Dravid and Yuvraj Singh to injuries, but the selectors named just one batting replacement. The squad also featured Karnataka fast bowler Abhimanyu Mithun as replacement for the injured Sreesanth, and Bengal wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha for Dinesh Karthik, dropped presumably for his irresponsible shot and a duck in the Chittagong Test. VVS Laxman, who injured his hand while going for a slip catch in Chittagong, was deemed fit.
The long injury list meant the selectors picked the squad only for the first Test, which begins in Nagpur on February 6. They will reassess the fitness of players and the performance of the replacements before naming the side for the second Test. A BCCI release, however, all but ruled out Dravid and Yuvraj of the second Test as well. Dravid, who fractured his cheekbone after getting hit by a Shahadat Hossain bouncer in Mirpur, was advised three weeks' rest, the release said. It also said that Yuvraj was out for the whole series. Kris Srikkanth, the chairman of selectors, though, said they would reassess the injury status after the first Test.
"Dravid was very keen to play but the doctors have advised him rest as a precautionary measure," Srikkanth said. "We have selected the best possible team considering the number of injuries that the Indian team have suffered in the recent series.
Saha's selection, ahead of Karthik, was prompted by the back problems MS Dhoni has suffered of late. Saha was signed up by Kolkata Knight Riders in the inaugural edition of the IPL, and managed 318 runs in five games at 39.75 in 2009-10 Ranji season. "Dhoni had a few niggles during the Bangladesh tour and had even missed the first Test. Even in the ODIs he had a few problems with his fitness, so we have included Wriddhiman Saha as a back up. If in the morning of the match, Dhoni is unavailable, we will have Saha as a replacement," Srikkanth said.
India squad for first Test: MS Dhoni (capt/wk), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, S Badrinath, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Amit Mishra, Pragyan Ojha, Ishant Sharma, M Vijay, Sudeep Tyagi, Abhimanyu Mithun, Wriddhiman Saha.
Board President's XI: Abhinav Mukund, Parthiv Patel (wk), Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma (capt), Manish Pandey, Cheteshwar Pujara, Abhishek Nayar, Piyush Chawla, R Ashwin, R Vinay Kumar, Abhimanyu Mithun, Shikhar Dhawan, Umesh Yadav, Manpreet Gony.