More surprised by Ganguly's selection

The new selection panel, headed by Krishnamachari Srikkanth, included Ganguly in the squad, a move which has given the former captain's Test career a fresh lease of life.

Former Chief Selector Kiran More on Wednesday described Sourav Ganguly's inclusion in India's 15-member Test squad for the first two Tests against Australia as a "step backwards" and said the new selectors had no long term plans.

HT Image

The new selection panel, headed by Krishnamachari Srikkanth, included Ganguly in the squad, a move which has given the former captain's Test career a fresh lease of life.

"I am really surprised (by Ganguly's selection). He was not in the Rest of India team for the Irani Cup team nor in Board President's XI. There is no long term planning. We are going backward but we need to look ahead," said More who had axed Ganguly during his tenure as chief selector.

"This is almost the same team that lost in Sri Lanka. Something is wrong somewhere," he told NDTV.

The former stumper also emphasised the need to select youngsters in the team.

"When players like Rohit Sharma and Badrinath will play Test. I don't think Badri will get a chance to play in the series with this team," he said.

Sharma, the talented Mumbai batsman, who was part of the Test team during the Sri Lankan tour, was dropped from the squad.

However, he said the new selection panel should be given more time to settle down.

"I can't blame them much. They are new. This is the first time they have chosen a team. They would need time to settle down," he said.