Pathan out, Parthiv in

A marathon selection committee meeting ended with the selectors making only one change, that too necessitated by injury. Ashish Nehra replac...

A marathon selection committee meeting ended with the selectors making only one change, that too necessitated by injury. Ashish Nehra replaced Irfan Pathan, suffering from a side strain, while Parthiv Patel retains his place in the squad.

Parthiv, it appears, was the talking point at the meeting held, the keeper in the public eye after a string of forgettable displays behind the stumps, though flourishing with the bat. What seems to have gone in his favour is the commendations of the spinners Harbhajan Singh and Anil Kumble, and Sourav Ganguly8217;s faith.

8216;8216;He8217;s had a poor game. I have seen him keep much better than this8217;8217;, remarked Ganguly. 8216;8216;As a captain I have faith in him and back his abilities.8217;8217;

Ganguly also made it clear that Patel, who idolises Adam Gilchrist, is in the side as a batsman. 8216;8216;Batting is a second consideration. I spoke to the bowlers. Both our spinners said he should be given a game.8217;8217;

However, the choice of Patel was not unanimous as MS Dhoni and Dinesh Kaarthick were also considered at the meeting. 8216;8216;Dhoni8217;s and Dinesh8217;s names were considered8217;8217;, the captain said. 8216;8216;Sadagopan Ramesh and Dheeraj Jadhav were also considered for the opener8217;s slot. S S Paul8217;s name too came up in the meeting. Sridharan Sriram8217;s name was not considered.8217;8217;

The rest of the squad remained unchanged. The Yuvraj Singh-Virender Sehwag pair is likely to retain the opening slot, sidelining Aakash Chopra, if Ganguly is to be believed.

Struggling to stay alive in the four-match series, Ganguly would be hoping that the wobbly hands behind the stumps develop some steel. Ditto for Yuvraj too, whose reaction to a bouncer could make a belly dancer envious. The Indian team management continued to play on the 8216;Sachin Effect8217; and kept the Mumbai batsman in the 15 in an effort to keep the Aussies guessing and indicated that the maestro was not ruled out of the third Test.

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8216;8216;Sachin is undergoing rehabilitation for his tennis elbow and is recovering8217;8217;, Board secretary SK Nair said. 8216;8216;He will be monitored on a day-to-day basis. Reports indicate that he is recovering fast. Based oh his match fitness two days before the match we will announce his availability in the team for the Nagpur Test.8217;8217;