Like the Sri Lanka’s Stratagem against Ricky Ponting’s team in the World Cup Super 8, India Team Selection is also following a hidden agenda.

First consider these facts:

Is it not a fact that America is way ahead in terms of sports?
Is it not a fact that Americans are fanatics about their teams (as so are the European nations)?
Is it not a fact that India took over a large share of America’s business and India worked overtime so that American’s could enjoy their game of baseball, basketball or even football?

So, sometime, in 1980-90s a strategy was formed. A chief of police force was chosen for the task. The task was simple. Indian’s were too much emotionally attached to their hockey. This chief of police was commendable in the manner in which he stamped out terrorism from Punjab. His next task was even tougher. And nobody was to know the purpose of the mission (at least till the mission was successful). Today, he is successful in his task. And the task was - to stamp out Hockey from the minds of Indian people. It takes usually 20 years after the last triumph to wash out a sport from the mind of people. And if you see now, no one gets emotional discussing hockey. And full marks to the chief of Police who did not brag to media about his success. Since his mission was to free the minds of people so that they can get back to work and make India focus on work.

But there was an issue. A haryanvi lad around the same time, despite the best of government efforts to make slipshod teams (well they called ghavri, binny and mohinder pacers), won the World Cup. Well, Team India (the one which drives India to work) did not lose hope. They installed a battery of people (the matrix) to destroy this new game. And years down the line, they have achieved the same success. Today, cricket has become empty blabber (like garibi hatao or even the population problem) and is expected to die quite soon. Still the matrix is taking no chances. It has this game under it’s crushing hold, but it’s hawk eye is watching for any other deviant game which tries to rise it’s head.

Team India is on a roll!

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Well the cat is out amongst the pigeons. It did create a little flutter when Sachin Tendulkar and Saurav Ganguly were dropped from ODI and Virender Sehwag from Tests in Bangladesh. Harbhajan and Irfan Pathan were dropped from both forms of cricket.

Test squad: Wasim Jaffer, Dinesh Karthik, Rahul Dravid (capt), VVS Laxman, Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Yuvraj Singh, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wk), Anil Kumble, Sreesanth, Zaheer Khan, VRV Singh, Ramesh Powar, Rajesh Pawar, Munaf Patel.

ODI squad: Gautam Gambhir, Robin Uthappa, Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid (capt), Yuvraj Singh, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wk), Dinesh Karthik, Manoj Tiwary, Dinesh Mongia, Piyush Chawla, Sreesanth, Munaf Patel, Zaheer Khan, RP Singh.

We can debate endlessly about the possible combinations. However, Irfan Pathan’s exclusion after a dressing room series (World Cup) is not exciting. We also need to get confidence into a person whom we expect to be possibly our next and only all rounder after Kapil Dev.

Recalling VVS Laxman was probably a very creative idea, but the ODI team could have done with Mohammad Kaif. We cannot recall anyone who can match the agility of Australia on the field except for Kaif or Yuvraj Singh. Kaif would be an exciting prospect even for Twenty20. And with the Twenty20 World Cup around the corner, we have to move fast a freeze our team positions soon. So after the World Cup disaster, experiments have to start now.

BCCI has once again wasted an opportunity to make history. Unless the agenda is something else…

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Sri Lanka rested 3 bowlers, Lasitha Malinga (the find of the world cup), Chaminda Vaas (their deep throat) and Mutthaiah Muralitharan (the best spinner in the world cup) when they faced Australia in their league match. This strategy has been questioned by all and sundry. Basically this was a strategem (a gem of a strategy)

Malinga by the grace of an injury was to be rested. But Sri Lanka chose to go ahead and drop Murali and Vaas as well. Now this strategy allowed them the following liberties:

1. They could afford to save their bowlers from exposing to Australian batsmen at this stage. Australian batsmen as using the league stage to batter the confidence of the bowlers so that when they meet them in the Semi Finals or Finals, the bowlers may opt for defensive line.
2. They have the advantage if they win with this depleted line up, and still not have the psychological disadvantage even if they lose. This is an unusual situation.
3. Losing also ensured that Australia finish at the top of the league and Sri Lanka won’t have to face them in the Semi Finals. The probability of New Zealand finishing on top is low since Sri Lanka had beaten them earlier.
4. This allowed Sri Lanka’s Best Batsmen to have a feel of all Australian bowlers but denied them (australian batsmen) a complimentary opportunity (to face the Sri Lankan attack). Malinga being a mystery weapon Sri Lanka would not like to disclose the surprise spring and allow Ponting and Hayden to become comfortable with the sight of his unusual action.
5. This also allowed them (Sri Lanka) to blood their 12-13-14 so that if the need arise, they are not raw and would have already faced the best team in the World Cup. And this allowed the 3 bowlers to get crucial rest before the last 2 matches. In contrast Australia has not been able to give sufficient opportunity to their bench to warm up.

In the end all other matches are now useless, and any team that can win the last 2 matches is the World Champion. And Sri Lanka is trying to save the best for the last.

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