Sachin Tendulkar is all set to return

Sachin Tendulkar is all set to return

 

Sachin Tendulkar is all set to return to the Test arena after a break of two months but all eyes will be on VVS Laxman's future. The selectors will pick the squad for the two-match series against New Zealand, starting August 23.The selectors will also pick the final squad for the World Twenty20 Championship in Sri Lanka in September and Yuvraj Singh, who is training at the NCA after recovering from a rare germ cell cancer, is in contention for a spot.

"It will depend on the fitness certificate that he will get from the NCA," a selection committee source informed.

The first Test against New Zealand will be held in Hyderabad while the second match will be played in Bangalore from August 31.

"There are two schools of thought on Laxman. One is that we should groom a youngster before the series against England, while the other wants to give Laxman a chance to play at home," the source said.

Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and coach Duncan Fletcher will be attending the meeting.

Incidentally, this will be India's first Test series after their 0-4 drubbing at the hands of Australia, earlier this year.

Tendulkar, who decided to take a break from the recently-concluded limited-overs series in Sri Lanka, will be fresh and raring to have a go at the New Zealanders, who had a forgettable Test series against the West Indies.

The series will also be important as it will be the start of Team India's journey without a man responding to the name of Rahul Dravid.

Talented India A captain, Cheteshwar Pujara, who has long been touted as Dravid's ideal replacement, is likely to get a long rope to prove his worth in Test cricket.

Rohit Sharma's string of failures and Pujara's impressive show for India A in West Indies makes the latter's case stronger.

Pujara has played three Test matches in 2010 with the highlight being a 72 against Australia in Bangalore in India's successful run chase.

The most interesting part of Friday's meeting will certainly be selection committee's stance on Laxman's future.

Sri Lankan captain Mahela Jayawardene said

Sri Lankan captain Mahela Jayawardene said

Sri Lankan captain Mahela Jayawardene said inconsistency was the main reason behind his team's dismal performance against India.
"We lost our grip in the game just when it seemed we were under control," Jayawardene told reporters after losing the match.On Tuesday's T20 game, Jayawardene said Lankans came back into the match in the last six overs, chasing over 150 to win. "It was important for us to keep wickets intact. We failed to do that and the pressure was building. Even after playing an extra batsman we failed to preserve our wickets.

Boucher 'unlikely' to play cricket in future

Boucher unlikely to play cricket in future

 Mark Boucher  former South Africa wicketkeeper, has said that it is unlikely he will play professional cricket in the near future as the healing process to his left eye continues.
Boucher's eyeball was lacerated last month on the first day of South Africa's tour to England,the bail ricocheted off the stumps and hit him during the tour match against Somerset in Taunton. He was forced to move his intended retirement, which he had planned after the Lord's Test, forward and returned home to South Africa to begin treatment. Boucher underwent one operation in England followed up by five more procedures in Cape Town. Although it was initially reported that he could pick up movement and detect light with the injured eye and he was hopeful of making a return at franchise or amateur level  "I have lost the lens, iris and pupil in my left eye. There was severe damage to my retina. I have had two major operations and four blood draining operations in the past three weeks and physically, at times, I have been in a lot of pain," Boucher said at his first press conference since the incident, at Newlands, where he also revealed how much his life had changed in recent weeks "It does get uncomfortable at times and being a sportsman, I want to be active and outdoors but, without a pupil, I find any amount of sunlight very harsh and have thus been restricted to the confines of my home. It is unlikely that I will play any professional cricket again in the near future, which is very unfortunate as I was looking forward to contributing as a player for the Cobras. The risk of additional damage to my left eye or even damage to the other eye, doesn't warrant it."