Ganguly gets a reprieve
Sourav Ganguly, the deposed Indian captain, has managed to find a place in the team for the first Test against Sri Lanka in Chennai which starts on Dec 2, weather permitting. The interesting bit is that Ganguly has been included as an "allrounder" in the team. Laxman & Kumble were also included in the squad automatically. The news which could surprise a few is the inclusion of Dhoni as the wicket-keeper for Tests ahead of Dinesh Karthick. There is room for debate in this, but you just can't ignore the exploits & charisma of the man from Jharkhand. RP Singh, who impressed one and all with his impeccable line and length has also been included in the squad of 15.
The team is as follows.
* Virender Sehwag
* Gautam Gambhir
* Rahul Dravid (c)
* Sachin Tendulkar
* VVS Laxman
* Yuvraj Singh
* Sourav Ganguly
* Mohammad Kaif
* Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wk)
* Irfan Pathan
* Ajit Agarkar
* Harbhajan Singh
* Murali Kartik
* Anil Kumble
* RP Singh
My guess on the XI would be: Sehwag, Gambhir, Dravid, Tendulkar, Laxman, Ganguly, Dhoni, Pathan, Kumble, Harbhajan, Kartik.
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Ganguly's rise and fall - a timeline
Here is a the Timeline of Rise & Fall of the Bengal Tiger & Previous Indian Captian - Saurav Ganguly.
http://cricket.blogsbyindia.com/post/29/165
Three spinners in the playing XI! Surely, that's an overkill, spinning track or not. I think 10 players pick themselves for the test team: Sehwag, Gambhir, Dravid, Tendulkar, Laxman, Pathan, Agarkar, Kumble, Harbhajan and Dhoni. I would like to see the last spot go to RP Singh. Read about it here: http://yorker.wordpress.com/2005/11/23/my-test-xi/
Pratik: 3 seamers in chennai is luxury.
By 
Ganesh (24 Nov 2005, 2:21:00 pm)
Given that Ganguly has been picked for his bowling (*chuckle*), I think we will go in with Pathan and Ganguly as the opening bowlers and three spinners, which is Ganesh's guess too. Then again, that'd be a huge mistake, because with Jayasuriya absent at the top and Sri Lanka's ability to play spin better than swing/seam, we should go with the 2 pace and 2 spin option. I think Ganguly will play, given that he's in the 15. Which means Yuvraj and Kaif can drive the drinks cart.
By Jagadish (25 Nov 2005, 7:18:00 pm)
Jagdish, I am positive Dravid/Chappell are smart enough to not have Pathan and Ganguly opening the bowling (which also implies that there will only be two spinners). So, we all can rest assured as far as that aspect is concerned. Like I said earlier, I would like the last spot to go to RP Singh (or a proper batsman if the track is not conducive for pacemen). However, I have to concede it's possible that Ganguly could be filling that spot. I am hoping that doesn't happen though.
Pratik, if Ganguly opens the bowling with Pathan, we will have three spinners operating, since the lineup will be identical to what Ganesh posted: Sehwag, Gambhir, Dravid, Tendulkar, Laxman, Ganguly, Dhoni, Pathan, Kumble, Harbhajan, Kartik.
But hey, given that Ganguly is being picked as the all-rounder, should he bat above or below Pathan?
By Jagadish (27 Nov 2005, 6:20:00 pm)
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