CSK: Squad List

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IPL 2010 Chennai Super Kings Squad, Schedules, Fixtures, Scorecard

India has the bench strength to cope with the absence of Rahul Dravid, Yuvraj Singh and S Sreesanth in the forthcoming Test series against South Africa, according to Harbhajan Singh.

'India can win without Dravid and Yuvraj'

The off-spinner said that the replacements – S Badrinath, Wriddhiman Saha and Abhimanyu Mithun – have earned their places with strong performances in the domestic circuit and he hopes that they continue to do well in the international arena.

“It would have been good to have them (Dravid and Yuvraj), but whatever players we have got, they are good and have done well in the Ranji session. Hopefully they will continue their good form against South Africa as well,” Harbhajan said.

Dravid is out of the series with a fractured cheek bone while Yuvraj and Sreesanth are out due to a tear in his wrist and a hamstring injury respectively. All these injuries were sustained during India’s tour of Bangladesh.

With the No 1 Test team taking on the No 2 ranked side, Harbhajan predicted a tough two match Test series ahead.

“Only time will tell who will come out on top. We have full respect for our opposition but if we play to our potential, we can beat anyone,” Harbhajan said, adding, “When the top two teams play each other, the level with be intense. You have to admit that South Africa is a very good Test side. But if we play to our potential and our ability, we can beat any side in the world.”

Nagpur, Feb 3 (ANI): Vincent Barnes, the bowling coach of South African cricket team contended that although the Indian tour is hectic, the players are a focussed lot.

Indian cricket tour, a hot job, opines South African bowling coach

Addressing a news conference after the draw of the stumps on the first day of the two-day practice match against India’s Board President’s XI here on Tuesday, Barnes said: “We are quite focussed.

We have come here and it is a big job ahead for us…playing against the number one team in the world. We knew that coming Test would be a big job, all the management and we have spoken in-length about it. We come here to do a job and that is what we have to do. It is no exception to any other tour and it is going to be a hot job.”

He also hinted to include two spinners in the first Test against India commencing on February 6 at Nagpur.

“It is good to get two spinners in our team that to me is the most important…because the Test is coming up and we know that we have to step it up and we would definitely step it up once the Test started,” he added.

The first Test starts in Nagpur on Saturday (February 6) after South Africa opened their tour with a two-day match against a Board President’s XI.

India displaced South Africa as world number one in December after securing a 2-0 series victory over Sri Lanka.

South Africa had come close to winning a series in India two years ago when they took a 1-0 lead before the home side squared the three-match series on an unpredictable pitch of Green Park in Kanpur. (ANI)

As a rule, the emergence of a rookie bowler with raw pace generates unparalleled excitement in cricket circles in India, a country where new-ball bowlers have traditionally worn the medium-pacer tag. So, with Abhimanyu Mithun in the squad for the first Test against South Africa after a dream first-class debut season, hopes are being harboured that the 20-year-old speedster will continue to intimidate batsmen at the international level.

India's new mantra: Need for speed

But in this atmosphere of anticipation, a significant statement made by the chairman selectors, K Srikkanth, seemed to have been lost. Speaking about the green-behind-the-ears paceman Mithun, the former India opener said: “We really needed a genuine fast bowler for Tests, so we included him.”

It was the chairman’s way of saying that this wasn’t just a one-off selection but a new trend that is set to continue in the coming days. As some other members of the committee confirmed, the criteria for Test selection is no longer only wickets and experience, but a tick in the speed box had become mandatory as well.

A look at the Board President XI squad, announced on the same day as the Test team, proves India’s consistency in this thinking. The usual medium pacers who generally face touring teams in warm-up games were conspicuous by their absence. Bowlers such as Munaf Patel, RP Singh, Irfan Pathan and Dhawal Kulkarni were excluded, and sources said it wasn’t a mere coincidence that they all bowled below 130 kph.

The 22-year-old Vidarbha bowler has played just 11 first-class games, but his quick spell in the Duleep Trophy last year – when he beat Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman for pace – was a factor the selectors kept in mind. “These days in international cricket, it is very tough to get wickets if you don’t have pace. The margin of error is very small for a medium pacer, especially on Indian pitches. So while travelling around the country, we keep an eye on the quick bowlers,” a national selector, who did not wish to be named, told The Indian Express when asked about Mithun and Yadav.

Central Zone coach Gyanendra Pandey endorsed the view that Yadav fit the bill perfectly. “He is very quick and can unsettle a new batsman with his pace. I watched his games where he has consistently bowled 140 kph all day,” he said.

There is a startling similarity between the two young pacemen in the news. Like Mithun, Yadav was a school-level athlete who played tennis-ball cricket far away from a cricket centre with modern facilities. If Mithun was spotted playing in an industrial area on the outskirts of Bangalore, Yadav’s beginning can be traced to street matches in Khaparkheda, a village near Nagpur.

Four years ago, when he went to Nagpur to play a tennis-ball tournament, local coach G Gokhale got impressed by his pace. Yadav was to soon hit the big league as former Vidarbha player Pritam Gandhe took him under his wings.

Within days, he was playing first-class cricket, but an injury hampered his rise. Back to peak fitness, he is now waiting to bowl at the South Africans on his home ground. “I am really looking forward to the game,” he said. “It will be a dream come true.”

India Squad For South-Africa Series 2010 | India Cricket | Live Scorecard

“After Sourav Ganguly, several players from Bengal had got a look-in for the Indian team, but they could not cement their places. But I will try to perform well to stay there as long as I can.”

However, 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.

“The team has been selected just for the first Test. We will take a call on the team for the second Test after getting the fitness report of the injured players.”

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.

Sreesanth, who picked up a hamstring injury in Chittagong and missed the Mirpur Test, was recovering at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore. “I am recovering well and thought I would be fit enough for the full series against South Africa,” he told the Hindu, a day before the selection. “But it seems to be taking a little more time and I should be good enough for the second Test and one-dayers.” Mithun, his replacement, was rewarded for a sensational debut Ranji season, during which he took a hat-trick in his first match, led Karnataka to the final, and ended as the leading wicket-taker, scalping 47 at 23.23 apiece. “He has done extremely well in the domestic season and we really needed a fast bowler for the Tests, so we have included him,” Srikkanth said of Mithun’s inclusion.

The Indian selectors also named a squad for Board President’s XI’s two-day match against the South Africans in Nagpur. Rohit Sharma was appointed captain while Mithun was also part of that squad in order to give him a look-in ahead of the Test. The big omission from the list of 14 was Wasim Jaffer, who scored 638 Ranji Trophy runs at 53.16 this season. It was a clear message that the selectors wanted to invest in youth for these tour games, and not bring back players who have been tested at the top before. Abhishek Nayar, at 26 years, was the oldest player in the side.

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.