Dropping Lehmann might only be the start, says Chappell

The former Australian batting great Greg Chappell has warned that the dropping of Darren Lehmann may signal the start of a purge of players ahead of the next World Cup, in the West Indies in 2007.

Lehmann's international career seems to be at an end after he was left out of Australia's one-day squad for next month's tour of New Zealand next month. At 35, he is only two years older than Adam Gilchrist, Matthew Hayden and Michael Kasprowicz, while Test stalwarts Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne are also well into their thirties.

"I think it just puts everyone on notice," Chappell, a former Test captain and selector himself, told the Sydney Daily Telegraph. "It doesn't matter what you've done in the past, it's all about your performance now and looking to the future. A lot of guys in that squad will be on the wrong side of their thirties by the time the next World Cup rolls around, so there may well be other changes as well. They [selectors] can't afford to make half-a-dozen changes in one go, so they've obviously looked at shoring up some gaps right now, and have got on with it."

The Australian selectors have proved ruthless in recent years, axeing the Waugh twins from the one-day team before the 2003 World Cup, and jettisoning Andy Bichel and Michael Bevan - until recently seen as the world's best one-day player - before the current season. "History shows that they've tapped Allan Border, David Boon, Ian Healy, Steve Waugh and Mark Waugh on the shoulder and have basically told them 'Right-ho guys, it's time to move on and let the next generation through', and I think this is pretty similar," said Chappell. "You've got to freshen up every so often."