The Indian BCCI has taken drastic measures in order to find a winning formula to their one day squad.
Following the non-shock reinstatement of Sourav Ganguly as India’s captain today has not followed the script and the BCCI has taken many aback with their one day squad.
In what seems like a panic move the BCCI has dropped Anil Kumble, Zaheer Khan, VVS Laxman and Lakshmipathy Balaji. Their replacements are somewhat a mixture of old and new names.
For Kumble comes the long term spinner understudy Murali Kartik, hard grafter Ajit Agarker for Balaji and new name Rudra Pratap Sigh, a left-arm swing bowler for Khan.
To many analysts this may seem like a dramatic move. Dropping quality players such as Khan and Balaji and also possibly driving the final nail into Kumble’s one day career may lead the ultimate demise of the team and confirm the madness of the BCCI.
Admittedly the players had not performed to their best in Sri Lanka but it was their first series of the season. Many have commented that Kumble is no longer wanted in the team even if he performs at his best. Closing in on his 35th birthday means he is certainly no spring chicken, but age has only drove him harder to work and has shown he is still the best spinner India has ever had.
Zaheer Khan and Laxshmipathy Balji have had rather patchy performances since their debuts, but that is the case with the rest of the team. Dropping them could damage their confidence and inevitably throw them back to the shadows of the fringe.
The inclusion of Agarkar is not so surprising but it is very questionable. He has been in and out of the squad, being mainly used as a plaster when a bowler is ruled out. He has some talent but has never really performed to his potential. He lacks any real pace or accuracy and cannot do much with the ball. His inclusion could just be because he is a right-armer. Bowling line and length is sometimes needed in a one dayer but it’s the current lack of any real aggression that has shown the team up lately.
