Sports India

The series loss (1-4) in West Indies does not warrant wholesale changes to the Indian ODI squad that will be chosen for the tri-series in Sri Lanka on Thursday. It was a verdict voiced by almost all former cricketers, who TOI spoke to on the eve of the selection.

Former India captain Dilip Vengsarkar, while ruling out a major shuffle, felt, “Anil Kumble and Zaheer Khan should get a look-in purely on merit.” Agrees former national selector Ashok Malhotra: “I feel Zaheer should be back, may be in place of Munaf (Patel). And Kumble should be in the side. He will be a key player on Lankan pitches and South Africa do not play him well.”

While conceding that “large-scale changes don’t make sense", former left-arm spinner Maninder Singh too backed Kumble and Zaheer’s recall. “I would pick Sreesanth, Munaf and Agarkar as the pacers with the fourth spot being a toss-up between Irfan and Zaheer. I feel that VVS Laxman merits a place in the ODI team and that Gambhir should open with Sehwag. Sachin should bat at No 4.”

Malhotra was perplexed at the talk of large-scale changes in the squad. “In spite of the side not doing well in West Indies, I don’t see any need to replace Sehwag, Dravid, Sachin or Dhoni. And I don’t think you have players of that calibre to replace them.”

Former national selector Sambaran Banerjee too stressed on the accent on experience. “We don’t have good enough players as replacement,” he said while throwing his weight behind Kumble. Among the younger lot, he felt, “Tamil Nadu captain S Badrinath could be tried out.”

Former India opener and coach, Anshuman Gaekwad put things in perspective, saying, “The ideal thing would be to have a blend of youth and experience. The wickets in Lanka being conducive to slow bowling, I think three spinners should be included in the squad. It won’t do us any good if we try to do more experimentation.”

“The selectors have a knack of throwing up surprises whenever a squad is picked and one can never rule out wholesale changes,” says former India wicketkeeper Surinder Khanna, who concurs with Gaekwad’s theory of an ideal mix. “The return of Sachin and Kumble to the ODI squad would bring in vital experience. Also, despite his poor show in recent matches, Irfan should be persisted with,” he added.

Former India off-spinner Gopal Sharma, who foresees “a couple of changes,” feels Venugopal Rao and Munaf Patel could be axed. “With Sachin (Tendulkar) back, it will mean one of the youngsters like Venu will miss the bus. I think Munaf Patel has drawbacks as a One-day cricketer. Keeping the World Cup in mind, a younger paceman should be drafted in.”

Sharma’s statemate and junior national selector, Shashikant Khandekar, deosn’t agree with the general mood. “This is the right time to get the youngsters with an eye on the World Cup. India has enough experience. So there is need to infuse some young blood. Younger, faster legs are as crucial as experience,” he says