Ganguly aghast at exclusion from Asian XI

Saurav Ganguly's exclusion from the Asian XI for their match against the World XI at Dhaka on April 8, has irked a large number of people in Bengal. Former selectors and players have all protested vehemently against his omission. Even Ganguly is not amused.

In Calcutta on Wednesday, former Bengal cricketer and a member of the BCCI appointed pitch committee Gopal Bose alleged that the quota system also existed while selecting such a side. "Look at the composition of the team. Three players have been selected from Sri Lanka and four each from India and Pakistan. The selectors have forgotten that Ganguly had the best performance amongst the left handers. I am surprised at the omission. How can a person who gets selected for the World XI be omitted from the Asian XI?" It may be recalled that Ganguly had played for the World XI in the Princess Diana benefit match.

The Bengal coach Palash Nundy was quite sarcastic when he asks, "What is the average of Ajay Jadeja during the last couple of years?" Then he went on to add, "Ganguly is a better cricketer than Jadeja any day. I am waiting to see the recording of the meeting which is scheduled for a telecast. I would like to find out the exact reasons as to why Ganguly was not included."

Former selector Sambaran Bannerjee has another pertinent point to offer. "Ganguly is a better bowler than either Saeed Anwar or Sanath Jayasuriya. So he should have been included in the eleven. And for the last three seasons Ganguly has scored more runs than both the left handers included in the side as openers."

Former Test cricketer Pranab Roy however, feels that Ganguly's form with the bat in the recent Test series may have lead to his omission. "But even then the selectors should have considered his form in the one dayers. He has been India's most successful batsman in the shorter version of the game in recent times."

The man himself is aghast. However, he has decided to put the matter behind him and concentrate on the match that marks a new beginning in Indian cricket tomorrow at Kochi. Talking over the phone today, Ganguly said, "I had the highest number of runs in 1997 and 1999. I was second in 1998. If that is not enough to justify my selection then what else can I say."

Some of Ganguly's closest friends were of the view that the exclusion would affect him mentally. A close family friend said, "We knew how keen he was to play in this game''. The person then went on to add, "Saurav's exclusion would be a loss to the ICC. His inclusion would have brought more crowds for the game."