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NEW DELHI - Cricket-mad India is arguing whether dropping Rahul Dravid from the one-day squad was harsh or just the beginning of a selectors' revamp that will also cull fellow stalwarts Sachin Tendulkar and Saurav Ganguly.
Dravid, the batting mainstay for over a decade with Tendulkar and Ganguly, was omitted for the first two games of the home one-day series against Pakistan starting today.
Although he struggled in the home one-day series defeat by Australia, few expected the selectors to act so swiftly against a player nicknamed "The Wall" for his solidity and exploits.
The move could spell a major shift in focus to youth in the limited-over formats.
The senior trio, all former captains, belong to an elite group of seven who have amassed over 10,000 one-day runs, but their age, fitness and fielding have increasingly come under the spotlight. Ganguly is 35, Tendulkar and Dravid 34.
The demand for fresh faces began after India were eliminated in the first round of the World Cup in March and has grown after a young side minus the senior trio won the inaugural Twenty20 championship in September.
One national selector has suggested it is time for the trio to make room for youngsters in the ODIs.
"The seniors should understand that if they want to prolong their careers, they should play only test matches like Shane Warne and the others," he told Reuters on condition of anonymity.
Another unnamed selector was more emphatic.
"We felt that the time to ease the seniors out has started," he was quoted as saying in the Hindustan Times daily.
"We will not stop here," he said. "We will also go to Saurav and Sachin after this."
The Twenty20 success under wicketkeeper Mahendra Dhoni has thrown up young batsmen such as Robin Uthappa, Gautam Gambhir and Rohit Sharma who could establish themselves in the build-up to the 2011 World Cup in the region.
Now the tough home series against Pakistan followed by the tour of Australia should provide the answers over the future of the veteran trio.
- REUTERS
