Why no Kumble: Gavaskar

It is a good thing that we are playing a lot of matches before the World Cup. But to succeed in these assignments, India need to have a fine balance of youth and experience

The debate on whether Anil Kumble, India8217;s highest wicket-taker, should have been touring Sri Lanka or not just got heated up when former India captain Sunil Gavaskar pointed out the experience factor, or rather the lack of it, in the current Indian team.

Gavaskar felt the team cannot afford to bank on youth alone. 8216;8216;Look at what Sanath Jayasuriya8217;s return to the Sri Lankan team did for them on their recent tour of England. I think, Jayasuriya8217;s performance was a clear pointer to what experience can bring to your side,8217;8217; Gavaskar, speaking on the sidelines of a promotional event here, commented.

During the one-day series against England, Jayasuriya hit their bowlers for 322 runs as he picked up the Man-of-the-Series award. He and Upul Tharanga were also involved in a record 283-run stand that carried Sri Lanka to a 5-0 sweep.

For the coming series against South Africa, the Lankans have been forced to retain the ageing left-hander for the opener8217;s slot.

Suggesting that Kumble brought as much experience to the Indian line-up as Jayasuriya brought to the Lankans, Gavaskar felt it was time the leg-spinner was back in the scheme of things if the team management felt that his services would be needed in the West Indies, next year.

The selectors had mulled over it for quite some time before deciding to let Kumble carry on with his stint at Surrey and allow him to return for the forthcoming Champions Trophy, later this year.

8216;8216;Somebody like Kumble doesn8217;t need practice matches. With his kind of experience and ability, he can straight away walk into the team,8217;8217; Chairman of selectors Kiran More had recently said.

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Gavaskar, however, spoke of how it was important for the Indians to build up their morale in the run up to the World Cup, match by match. 8216;8216;It is a good thing that we are playing a lot of matches before the World Cup. But to succeed in these assignments, India need to have a fine balance of youth and experience,8217;8217; he said, acknowledging the fact that the services of the ageing leggie could be vital for Dravid and Co.

The former opener, however, added that there was still some time for India to deliberate on the options available. 8216;8216;There8217;s a lot of time left, so maybe, the experimentations can be carried on for a little more time. The final team or maybe the best 15 or 16 can be figured out maybe a couple of months before the event.8217;8217;