Veteran Trio In Team For 2nd Unofficial Test

The second unofficial Test between India A and West Indies A begins on the outskirts of Mangalore in less than 24 hours.  All eyes will be on the veteran trio of Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir and Zaheer Khan as they try and make a comeback into the Test fold. 

The salubrious setting of a small college cricket ground, will be the arena where the three discarded veterans of the Indian team will be making their bid to earn a recall into the main squad.  It will be no easy task especially for Sehwag and Gambhir, as the pair of Murali Vijay and Shikar Dhawan have firmly entrenched themselves at the top of the order.  If there is one glimmer of hope for Veeru and Gauti as they are affectionately known by their fans, it is that neither Vijay or Dhawan have proven themselves overseas.  And a tough overseas tour to South Africa in the near future (assuming the CSA and BCCI can reach an agreement) may be just the time that Chairman of selectors Sandip Patil decides that experience is worth persevering with.  Of course a century or more, wouldn't hurt their argument either.

As for Zaheer Khan, if he is fully fit, and not harboring a lingering injury, there is less doubt about his value as leader of the Indian bowling attack, especially in South Africa.  Anyone who remembers how Zaheer along with Ashish Nehra and Javagal Srinath bowled India into contention in the World Cup of 2003 as well as his exploits in 2006-07 and 2010-11 would be convinced that he would be a great asset in the team.  He is looking very much fitter too and one hopes he finds his groove quickly.  It would be very exciting to watch him in the company of young pacers like Mohammad Shammi and Ishwar Pandey if one or both are picked in the squad.

In any case, the normally sedate town of Shimoga will be the center of the Indian Test cricket fan's attention over the next four days or so.  The standard refrain is that the IPL makes youngsters lazy and contented and blunts their hunger.  As these three veterans are showing that is a fallacy and it is not the IPL that makes a player lazy, it is the innate nature of those who are less than true champions to give up easily, while those who are true winners never lose the fire in the belly, no matter how well compensated they are, as long as they believe they have it in them to contribute at the top level.