Ganguly excluded for next 3 ODIs

Despite his century in a recent Duleep Trophy match, Sourav Ganguly has been excluded from the Indian One Day International squad to play the next three matches against Sri Lanka. Ganguly was initially left out of the team for the first two matches due to lack of fitness, and Rahul Dravid was named captain.

Now questions over the future of Ganguly as a player and captain are stronger than ever. Although he has proved fitness and good form, he still does not figure in what the Indian selectors call “the best side possible.”

It appears that the selectors are aiming to prepare players for the 2007 World Cup, giving valuable international caps and experience to potential players for the future. Such plans may deny Ganguly a return to the team in the near future if at all, especially considering recent pressures and criticism.

The Indian Squad:
Rahul Dravid (C), Ajit Agarkar, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wk), Gautam Gambhir, Murali Kartik, Irfan Pathan, Suresh Raina, Y Venugopala Rao, Virender Sehwag, Harbhajan Singh, Rudra Pratap Singh, Yuvraj Singh, S Sreesanth, Sachin Tendulkar, Jai Prakash Yadav.