Srinath, Nehra out of ODI squad

Ashish Magotra

All-rounders Virendra Sehwag and Reetinder Singh Sodhi have been included in the Indian team for the triangular one-day series involving Zimbabwe and the West Indies while openers Shiv Sunder Das and Sadagoppan Ramesh, and speedsters Javagal Srinath and Ashish Nehra and Sairaj Bahutule are among those from the current Test team who have been left out.

The selection committee, which met in Bombay on Wednesday, also included Railways paceman Harvinder Singh and middle-order batsman Dinesh Mongia in the 14-member team for series, from June 23 to July 7.

Announcing the team, selection committee chairman Chandu Borde said the Board of Control for Cricket in India "always considers performances". He informed that there was slight doubt over the fitness of Ajit Agarkar but BCCI honorary secretary Jaywant Lele spoke to team physio Andrew Leipus, who confirmed that the paceman is 100 per cent fit. However, both Lele and Borde said they are unaware of the exact nature of Agarkar's injury.

Harvinder Singh makes a return to the squad after being left in the wilderness for four years. The last one-day tournament he had played in was at Sharjah, the Coca-Cola Cup, in 1997/98. His comeback is attributed to his superior fielding and excellent line and length.

Meanwhile, Yuvraj Singh failed to make it to the squad with Dinesh Mongia being preferred for his consistency. Virendra Sehwag too is back following injury and will fill the all-rounder's position.

From the current squad in Zimbabwe, Javagal Srinath, Borde informed, opted out of the ODI team while Ashish Nehra was dropped because the selectors reckoned that Harvinder Singh would make a better contribution in the one-day version of the game.

The team:

Sourav Ganguly (Captain)
Rahul Dravid (Vice-captain)
Sachin Tendulkar
VVS Laxman
Sameer Dighe (Wicket-keeper)
Hemang Badani
Zaheer Khan
Harbhajan Singh
Ajit Agarkar
Reetinder Singh Sodhi
Virendra Sehwag
Dinesh Mongia
Harvinder Singh
Debashish Mohanty