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Azhar, Mongia back in Indian team

The expected has happened.

Mohammad Azharuddin has returned to the Indian ranks.

As has Nayan Mongia, despite an outing for the Board President's XI at the Wankhede that can only be described as disastrous.

Of the team that went on the disastrous tour Down Under, Hrishikesh Kanitkar, Sunil Joshi, Jacob Martin, Debashish Mohanty and Devang Gandhi paid the price for lacklustre performances. MSK Prasad, who kept in the Tests, and Samir Dighe, who kept in the ODIs, paid a price, period.

But the big surprise among the exclusions was that of veteran seam bowler Venkatesh Prasad, who finds himself out of the team, dropped for lack of form.

Sachin Tendulkar meanwhile dropped a little bombshell when he announced that he will resign as Indian captain after the two Pepsi Tests against South Africa, which means that India will have a new captain for the five one dayers that follow, and from there on in.

The national selectors, after much agonising -- the team was expected to be announced during the tea break, on day two of the game between the Board President's XI and the visiting Proteas, but it was eventually announced, after a prolonged meeting, only at 5 pm -- came up with a 14 member squad, with the proviso that it would hold good only for the first Test, and that changes would be made, if required, for the second.

The team is as follows: Sachin Tendulkar (captain), Wasim Jaffer, VVS Laxman, Rahul Dravid, Saurav Ganguly, Mohammad Azharuddin, Nayan Mongia, Anil Kumble, Murali Karthik, Nikhil Chopra, Javagal Srinath, Ajit Agarkar, T Kumaran and Mohammad Kaif.

The big news of the day was that Kapil Dev did not come for the selection committee meeting, which he is expected to attend as coach of the side. "We requested him to come, but he didn't," said Jaywant Lele, board secretary. "It does not matter whether he comes or not," Lele added, indicating that the ongoing feud between Kapil and the board secretary is far from over.

The board in fact is not having much luck with its 'requests'. "We requested Sachin not to step down as captain but he is adamant," Lele said.

Sachin himself read out a press statement, accepting moral responsibility for the team's defeat on the tour Down Under and announcing his determination to step down as captain at the end of the two-Test Pepsi Cup series against South Africa.

Sachin indicated that he was leading in these two Tests only to help the selectors to find a new captain. "Personally, I am happy to play with anyone, and under anyone," Sachin said in his statement.

The Indian team, which packs five debutants, has three pacemen in Srinath, Kumaran and Agarkar, though it is doubtful if all three will play. The team also has three spinners in Chopra, Kumble and Murali Karthik -- though again, it is unlikely given the Indian propensity to pad its batting, that all three will play.

It is pretty evident that Jaffer and Laxman will open (though the team could well spring a surprise and open with Ganguly, who has recently played that role for Bengal, which he leads), with Dravid, Tendulkar, Azhar and Ganguly to follow in that order in the batting lineup, Mongia heading the late middle-order/early tail. Which does not seem to give much chance to Mohammad Kaif, the young hopeful who recently led India to a win in the Under-19 World Cup.

The only player from outside the BPXI to come in was Nikhil Chopra. Asked why he was not played in the BPXI if the selectors were in fact considering him, Chandu Borde, chairman of selectors, said, "We know his capabilities and that he is able to keep one end tight, so we didn't need to see him play here."

And Azhar? "We picked him for his experience," Borde said.

Will Azhar be considered for the captaincy, now that Tendulkar has announced his decision to quit the job (interestingly, Tendulkar intended to announce the decision ten days ago, but for one reason or the other, the announcement kept getting deferred)?

"We will have to think about that," said Borde.