Let the best men play
The Times of India's Sumit Mukherjee calls for the inclusion of Yuvraj Singh and Rahul Dravid in both the Test and ODI teams.
ESPNcricinfo staff
25-Feb-2013
AFP
The Times of India's Sumit Mukherjee calls for the inclusion of Yuvraj Singh and Rahul Dravid in both the Test and ODI teams.
We have a situation where there is a traffic jam in the Indian batting with 'brand new cars' jostling for space with a few 'old models' that should have long been scrapped. The problem with Indian cricket selectors is that they have always suffered from a delusion that they have an obligation to please everyone.
In trying to do so, they invariably end up upsetting everyone including the team's balance. They also tend to approach their job from the wrong end. Over the years, selectors have tended to pick or drop a player and then sought to justify their deed when all they ever need to do is pick the best and shut out the rest.
If dropping Dravid from the ODIs reflected their confused state of mind, keeping an in-form Yuvraj out of the Test XI betrayed complete bankruptcy of thought. VVS Laxman's polished unbeaten 72 in the Kotla Test against Pakistan may have Dilip Vengsarkar and his colleagues nodding in approval, but that still leaves Yuvraj boxed in as far as Test cricket
Ashok Ganguly is an editorial assistant at Cricinfo