Yuvraj Singh’s return will strengthen Team India

Tags: Australia tour of India 2013 - 14, India, Australia

Published on: Oct 01, 2013

The Indian team for the sole T20 and first three ODIs has been selected. The biggest news from that is obviously the return of veteran all-rounder Yuvraj Singh. The southpaw’s selection was pretty much on expected lines after his great performances on the domestic circuit in recent times.

The Indian team for the sole T20 and first three ODIs has been selected. The biggest news from that is obviously the return of veteran all-rounder Yuvraj Singh. The southpaw’s selection was pretty much on expected lines after his great performances on the domestic circuit in recent times. The fitness programme he featured in when he was in France has definitely brought him back in shape, and the same has reflected in his recent performances. He was the top scorer for India A against West Indies A in the limited overs series, and came up with an impressive half-century leading India Blue during the Challenger Trophy. A fit and in-form Yuvraj would definitely make Team India stronger.

Most of the other senior players picked themselves, but there were a few interesting omissions and selections. Pace bowlers, Jaydev Unadkat and Mohammad Shami, both of whom featured in the series against Zimbabwe have been retained. It was expected that Umesh Yadav would find his place back in the team, but he has been axed. Perhaps the fact that he was very expensive in the Champions Trophy as well as the tri-series in West Indies went against him. Yadav definitely needs to work on this aspect of his game. Then again, with Irfan Pathan injured, it was expected that the selectors would retain Yadav to have some experience in the pace department.

Dinesh Karthik is another name who finds himself out of the reckoning yet again. He would have hoped to get yet another opportunity following a decent run in Zimbabwe. But, Karthik did not grab his chances before that, just like he has so often done in the past, and this axing thus does not seem too unfair. Karthik made two scintillating hundreds in the practice matches prior to the Champions Trophy, but when it came to the main event, he was a flop. He was given more chances because India won the Champions Trophy, but failed to grab those opportunities as well.

The fact that Ambati Rayudu, who was chosen for the Zimbabwe series, had an impressive debut, also went against Karthik. While the Tamil Nadu batsmen managed some decent scores, those paled in comparison to Rayudu, who looked much more in command. Karthik has only himself to blame. Had he come up with some striking innings, the selectors would have found it difficult to ignore his efforts. Murali Vijay is another man who is following in the footsteps of his senior state mate. Vijay just hasn’t looked the part in ODIs in spite of his obvious talent.

Among the others who were unlucky to miss out were Cheteshwar Pujara and seamer Mohit Sharma. Pujara deserves a longer in one-dayers and Sharma impressed in two games he played against Zimbabwe. But, with the regulars back in, it is understandable why they haven’t found a place. What wasn’t surprising was the fact that Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag remain out of contention. The message is clear-- they will need to perform extraordinarily to put their names back in the race.

--By A Cricket Analyst

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