Sriram shines on a gloomy day

India A 282 for 7 (Sriram 110*, Gambhir 45, Zaheer 3-38) v India Seniors
Scorecard

A superb unbeaten 110 from Sridharan Sriram was the brightest splash of sunshine on an otherwise grey afternoon as India A and India Seniors shared the honours on the opening day of a four-day warm-up match at Bangalore. Zaheer Khan and Irfan Pathan had given the Seniors the advantage with some incisive bowling in helpful conditions, but Sriram's fluent strokeplay wrested the initiative in the final session as the A team finished on 282 for 7.

Forever on the fringes of national selection, Sriram has kept on doing what he does best, scoring a pile of runs for his state, the South Zone and the A team. Soft-spoken, earnest and not cut out for a Coke commercial, he has had to watch as those less talented have had national caps thrown their way. "I take it one innings at a time these days," he said after the day's play. "I'm not thinking of selection. All I can do is keep on scoring, and hope someone notices."

He batted beautifully, tackling both pace and spin with equal aplomb. Pathan had rocked the A team just after lunch with two wickets in two balls, but Sriram and Venugopal Rao then put on 91 before Zaheer came back to scalp Rao and Mahendra Singh Dhoni either side of tea.

Zaheer's splendid opening spell - 7-5-3-1 - had been the highlight of the morning after Dinesh Mongia won the toss and elected to bat. Gautam Gambhir started confidently with three fours off Pathan, but neither he nor Dheeraj Jadhav could get Zaheer away. Yet, despite running in like a man who had a point or two to prove to those who reckon he's a lazy layabout, Zaheer just had the wicket of Jadhav - bowled for 8 - to show for considerable effort.

Gambhir, who's in direct competition with Aakash Chopra for an opening slot against Australia, showed glimpses of class in his 45. The effect was ruined, though, by the terrible position he got into to hook Pathan down to Ambati Rayudu, the substitute fielder, at short fine leg in the first over after lunch (106 for 3).

Mohammad Kaif played with great composure for his 31 as he sought to convert those who have tagged him a one-day specialist, but Pathan - who bowled with typical verve as the day wore on - ended a promising knock with one that darted back to trap him leg-before.

Mongia's attempt to impress the selectors had ended much earlier, as he was bowled by Harbhajan for just 17. It wasn't a day to cherish for the slow bowlers though, with a wet outfield making the ball heavy and difficult to grip. Both Sriram and Rao played Harbhajan with a measure of comfort, and Anil Kumble had to wait until the shadow of stumps to pick up his lone wicket, Murali Kartik caught by Rahul Dravid at slip.

A crowd of around 500 enjoyed the fare, and there was much encouragement for Zaheer, who bowled 19 miserly overs to suggest that he's in decent enough condition to take on Australia. He used the short ball effectively, and was a constant menace, out-bowling Pathan in the morning. And it was to him that Sourav Ganguly turned to just before tea with Sriram and Rao making sedate progress.

First he got Rao (36) to cut one to Virender Sehwag at point and then, after the tea break was taken, Dhoni gloved an attempted hook behind the stumps. The tail didn't wave the white flag though, with Kartik's obdurate 20 giving Sriram the support he needed as he pushed on to a deserved century.

When it finally happened, with a flash outside off stump streaking to the third man fence off Kumble's bowling, you had the truly bizarre sight of a pitch invasion, albeit by one red-shirted individual who charged to the middle to shake a bemused Sriram's hand.

And as the day drew to a close, attention shifted off the field, with Syed Kirmani, the chairman of selectors, fielding questions about the likely composition of the team, and his own fate. True to bumbling form, the Indian board has scheduled the elections for the selection committee in the week before the most important series that India will play in the foreseeable future.

The selectors don't know if they'll be around tomorrow, and the players in the middle are clueless about the individuals who will decide their fate. Welcome to the brave new world of Indian cricket, where TV rights and court cases have obscured the big picture. .

The various camera crews at the ground found themselves in the difficult situation of having to file reports without any footage. India's finest - Sachin Tendulkar and Ajit Agarkar excepted - had assembled for a match that could conceivably decide some futures, and only half a stand-full of people could watch the proceedings. As a popular punchline in these parts goes, We are like this only.