Nehra returns, Tendulkar, Zaheer rested for WI series

Fast bowler Ashish Nehra makes his way back to the Indian team after a four-year hiatus for India’s four-match one day international tour to the West Indies later this month. The Indian team, however, will be without some experienced campaigners.

India will be missing the experience of its most capped player and ODI genius in Sachin Tendulkar as the master batsman has requested he be rested from this tour which will take place from June 26 to July 5.

Also granted rest is pace bowler Zaheer Khan who injured his shoulder during his stint for the Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League. India’s most experienced seamer did not play the warm-up matches in the ongoing ICC World Twenty20 2009 but played in all the games of the tournament.

While Khan and Tendulkar have been granted rest, injuries have led to the omission of star-opener Virender Sehwag and one-down batsman Suresh Raina from the squad.

Sehwag sustained an injury while playing in the IPL which forced him out of the World Twenty20 mid-way through the tournament.

His role as vice-captain of the squad will be retained by Yuvraj Singh who was declared vice-captain for the World Twenty20.

Raina has a hairline fracture on his thumb, which he sustained at the World Twenty20, owing to which he has been granted rest.

The exclusion of some of India’s most experienced candidates allowed for the inclusion of some players who have been sitting on the sidelines for a very long time.

Ashish Nehra was sidelined by injury never to return to the Indian team. However, an impressive run in the IPL for the Delhi Daredevils (19 wickets at 7.68) has now seen him back in favour with the Indian selectors. Nehra played his last ODI in September 2005.

India’s third Test opener Murali Vijay and out-of-favour batsman Subramaniam Badrinath also forced their way into the squad owing to their impressive performances in the Ranji season.

Dinesh Kartik’s impressive run in the Indian Premier League (for the Delhi Daredevils) means he will travel to the Caribbean despite not getting to play a single game at the ICC World Twenty20, where he replaced Sehwag.

Another new face in the squad will be Mumbai batsman Abhishek Nayar who, like Vijay and Badrinath, has had an impressive Ranji run and has shown potential in the Indian Premier League for his franchise Mumbai Indians.

Fast bowler R.P.Singh and Ravindra Jadeja retain their places in the squad while Munaf Patel and Irfan Pathan, who were part of the tour to New Zealand earlier this year, could not manage to retain their places in the squad of 16.

This will be a good opportunity for the new faces to make a bid for their permanent places in the squad with major ICC tournament like the ICC Champions Trophy 2009 and ICC World Twenty20 2010 less than one year away.

The squad was selected via a teleconference between the selectors, coach, captain and honorary secretary of the BCCI.

India’s 16-member squad for tour to West Indies:

Mahendra Singh Dhoni (Captain), Yuvraj Singh (Vice-captain), Gautam Gambhir, Rohit Sharma, Harbhajan Singh, Pragyan Ojha, Yusuf Pathan, Murali Vijay, S. Badrinath, R.P. Singh, Praveen Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Abhishek Nayar, Ashish Nehra, Ravindra Jadeja, Dinesh Kartik.