The need for honest, dispassionate selectors

After flopping to Ajantha Mendis and Co in the series against Sri Lanka, the pressure is on several of India's old guard in the middle-order. With Sourav Ganguly potentially the first to get the sack, Harsha Bhogle writes in the Indian Express that the selectors should be upfront about what their objectives and reasons for any changes in the side are, and not hide behind undignified, anonymous leaks.

So, either the selectors must state that they are going to give youngsters a break but that they would like Ganguly to keep playing so that if he is in form and the youngsters aren’t they could go back to him. Alternately, they should make it clear to him that with Kaif, Rohit Sharma and Badrinath in the wings, and the enigmatic Yuvraj around, he is officially the first of the old guard to be asked to say goodbye.

He also ponders how the out-of-form Rahul Dravid will deal with the challenge of retaining his place.