Chase For The Mace

The next three years throw up a gamut of challenges for Indian cricket; winning the World Test Championship is the most important

- AYAZ MEMON

India's selectors caused some flutter among cricket aficionados by announcing a full-strength squad for the first of two Tests against Bangladesh starting next week. Barring pace ace Mohammed Shami, still recovering from injury, every player of known prowess in red-ball cricket was in the squad.

Bangladesh aren't exactly a major force in the five-day format, and have a particularly poor record against India. So, what forces were at play when chief selector Ajit Agarkar and his committee met to pick the team? The fundamental consideration, one understands, is an unofficial firman from the BCCI to select the strongest team now on for every match/series/tournament: allowing, of course, for injuries, workload management or other compelling reasons to give a player leave of absence.

The logic in such an approach is irrefutable, but has not always been applied diligently in the past. Against weak opponents, sometimes even strong ones, players have found ways to excuse themselves. The cricket establishment aims to eliminate such vagrancy going ahead.

Head coach Gautam Gambhir gave early notice of this after he assumed charge. For the ODI series against Sri Lanka immediately after the T20 World Cup, Gambhir asked for, and got, star batters Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, who could have been rested, to participate.

That India did not win the series despite the participation of these stalwarts was not germane to the issue. The message that the BCCI, and by extension the coach and captains of different formats, wanted to send out was loud and clear.