Board president XI vs South Africa - 2nd Feb to 3rd Feb -Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium, Nagpur

[cowboysfan]

interesting to see how vinay kumar performs here,he has been very consistent and he can bat a bit too.

[champ]

interesting to see how vinay kumar performs here' date='he has been very consistent and he can bat a bit too.[/quote'] true ..

[vvvslaxman]

kaif doe snot deserve a chance,he has done what he could,i respect his efforts but reality is he does not have the talent.

He is middle order Jaffer except Jaffer is a giant in domestic cricket.

[Aaku]

Yayyyyyyy Rohit and C2 ! :woot: Go Rohit Yay Rohit ! Go C2 Yay C2 !

[Show_stopper]

Surprised at Raina's omission..sometimes selectors fail to see the long-term goals.

[Aaku]

Surprised at Raina's omission..sometimes selectors fail to see the long-term goals.

What ? No C2 ! :omg:

[zubinpepsi]

so the fatass gets to lead the team after this magnificient triple..

[Ram]

No Irfan Pathan even in the BP XI? Come on, hasnt this guy been doing well with both bat and ball so far this season? So, do the selectors honestly think Manpreet Gony is a better long-term prospect than Irfan? Irfan may be only 6 year old international veteran, but lets not forget he turned 25 only two months. Isnt Gony too, roundabout the same age? For Indian cricket's sake, I hope the selectors and the the team management havent given up on Irfan. The guy's a PROVEN international performer. Agreed that he looked completely off color the last 2 seasons he played, but heck, it happens to all international cricketers. How many times have we found out that you neglect proven, international class performers at your own peril? And no Kohli in the BP XI is a terrible joke. The only reason why the guy couldnt make more of a mark in Ranjis this year was because he was on international duty. That does not we simply ignore him for domestic FC matches like the BP XI. Srikkanth and the rest of the current selection committee have done an outstanding job so far. But these two omissions have left me a touch disappointed.

[Show_stopper]

And no Kohli in the BP XI is a terrible joke. The only reason why the guy couldnt make more of a mark in Ranjis this year was because he was on international duty. That does not we simply ignore him for domestic FC matches like the BP XI. .

Isn't that even more true for Raina though?

[Aaku]

Isn't that even more true for Raina though?

I KNOWWWWW!

[Ram]

Isn't that even more true for Raina though?

In terms of test prospects, I'd have no hesitation whatsoever having Kohli ahead of Raina. Raina may be an outstanding ODI bat (even better than Kohli perhaps), but his batting does not have the fit and finesse that is generally required to succeed in test match cricket. I might well be proven wrong, but Raina is yet to convince me of his test match credentials.

[urbestfriend]

Isn't that even more true for Raina though?

To be fair, selectors have chosen to go with domestic performers who haven't been tested in international matches.We all know what Kohli and raina are upto but we dont know how dhavan or rahane or pujara will perform against international class bowling.

[vvvslaxman]

Good side. But what the heck is Gony doing in that line up. Sure he had his moments. But he is another VRV singh who bowls gun barrell straight and gets tonked around.

[diegovegaz]

this selection is a fail no kaif, after a double hundred; and a hundred in the duleep trophy

[Show_stopper]

I strongly disagree..the thing that most people miss about Raina's batting is driving technique. To be fair he hardly gets to play them with the position he bats at in ODIs. But for someone like me who has followed right from his debut..it was the very thing that was noticeable about his batting. The guy hardly ever edges the ball. guys like Yuvraj, Rohit and Kohli edge comparitively more on the same pitches,conditions etc(obviously when attempting to drive). There is a reason why Raina was picked out of blue from a training camp for batsmen right when greg chappell started his stint..people thought he was special. Was even considered a batting prodigy. there has to be something special about a guy who has earned praise from Greg chappell, Brian Lara and Buchanan. Its really unfortunate that his problems against the short delivery were exposed..people often ignore the other aspects of his batting. Someone like kohli may be better with the short ball but people ignore his tendency to play across the line because of his shuffle at the crease(trigger movement)..which should be a big concern for any guy hoping to achieve success at the test level. What this prolly means is Raina is going to be overlooked when it comes to a Test spot...beacuse most people are going to assume he is going to be a failure anyway. So if at all Raina has to play Test cricket, he will probably have to score evry heavily in the ODI format and hope that some opportunity turns up in the form of injury to some batsman in the squad. Not ideal..but what else can he do really..when he isn't even given the opportunity to play in BP XI? Mind you this isn't the first time this is happening..happened when Aus visited in 2008 as well. Rohit(rightly at the time) and Kohli were preferred then as well. They did justify it by scoring tons in the game but it clearly shows Raina is being ignored for the longer format.

[Show_stopper]

To be fair' date=' selectors have chosen to go with domestic performers who haven't been tested in international matches.We all know what Kohli and raina are upto but we dont know how dhavan or rahane or pujara will perform against international class bowling.[/quote'] Yes you're correct in that all the players in the squad(atleast as far as batting goes) seem to have made it on merit alone. So I suppose one can't really complain too much.

[coffee_rules]

Kaif after a double 100 and a 100 against the likes of Mithun and Vinaykumar...is ignored. He will have reasons to feel disappointed.

[ViruRulez]

Kaif should have been in the Board's XI side at least .. anyways he is a great captain and could have led the team well.. but I dont think the selectors are looking back at the old guys but are only looking for youngsters

[ViruRulez]

Kaif after a double 100 and a 100 against the likes of Mithun and Vinaykumar...is ignored. He will have reasons to feel disappointed.

I agree about Vinay Kumar too.. he was the highest wicket taker in the Ranji season and should have been in the President's XI at least

[Sooda]

Irfan is a failed test bowler. Unless he lights up FC, no reason to assume he has gotten any better. Kaif I agree deserves a second chance now that slots are opening up in the test team although he is more of a survivor rather than a stroke maker or a scorer. Regarding powar, he couldn't break into the test side due to Kumble and Harby and now we need to now look at younger guys who could be better than him.

I agree Pathan as a bowler is not test class, but as an allrounder, someone who can chip in with wickets and useful runs, a 5th bowler he could have a role to play- certainly a better option than Nayyar Id have thought. Pathan did ok too after coming back from injury. Just not sure of Ashwin who's ranji record this season is nothing great. i think he may be a good ODI prospect as an accurate offy who can bat a bit. But Not in the longer version where Powars ability to flight and test batsman that way will be more effecttive. Iqbal Abdullah had a decent season, maybe he could have got a look in. Poor selection overall.