Testing times for u-19 hopefuls

MUMBAI, FEBRUARY 21: Railways opener Asif Murtaza will lead a bunch of under-19 hopefuls against the the visiting Sri Lankan Colts in a t...

MUMBAI, FEBRUARY 21: Railways opener Asif Murtaza will lead a bunch of under-19 hopefuls against the the visiting Sri Lankan Colts in a three-day duel commencing at the Brabourne Stadium from tomorrow.

The Murtaza-led Indian cricket Board President8217;s XI comprising mostly of youngsters, who have performed creditably in the domestic circuit face one of their biggest trials in the Lankans.

Though the Lankans are fielding a depleted side for the tour opener, the encounter is of prime importance for the Indian lads as it would form the basis of selecting the Indian u-19 team for the one-off Test8217; to be held at the Wankhede Stadium from February 27.

Lankan coach Carlton Bernadus informed today that they had decided to leave out first-choice wicket-keeper Prasanna Jayawardena, who was a member of the Lankan seniors team to England last summer, Test player Malinga Banadara, Prabath Nishantha, Sujeewa de Silva and Ian Daniels. The Lankan outfit still comprises six players who took part in the last under-19World Cup in South Africa, including their skipper and opening batsman Upeka Fernando who is also among the 30 probables for the May 14-June 20 World Cup in England.

The Teams

Board President8217;s XI from: Asif Murtaza Rlys, captain, Ashu Jain Rajasthan, Dheeraj Jadhav Maharashtra, Vineet Saxena UP, Pushkaraj Jadhav Mumbai, Mrutunjay Tripathi UP, H Bangari WK, Orissa, Swapnil Hazare Mumbai, Sourashish Lahiri Bengal, C H Shyam Kerala, Arjun Yadav Hyderabad, Yuvraj Singh Punjab, Rajat Bhatia TN amp; Amit Suman Delhi.Sri Lanka: Upeka Fernando captain, Jerome Fernando, Satpath Kalum, Ranil Dhamika, Jehan Mubarak, Chamara Silva, Malintha Gajanayake, Thilina Kandambi, Duminda Perera, Nalin Wijesinghe and Pubudu Senevirathne.

Umpires: SN Bandekar amp; VM Gupte.

The Lanka U-19 Schedule

Feb 20: Arrival in Mumbai

Feb 22-24: vs Board President8217;s u-19 XI at Brabourne Stadium

Feb 27-Mar 2: One-off Test8217; at Wankhede Stadium

Mar 5 amp; 7: 1st amp; 2nd one-dayer at Gwalior

Mar 9 amp;11: 3rd amp; 4th one-dayer at Delhi

Mar 12: Departure to Sri Lanka.