Suresh Raina to lead India for Zimbabwe tour by CricketArchive Staff Reporter

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Player:	SK Raina
Event:	Zimbabwe Tri-Series 2010

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DateLine: 14th May 2010

 

Indian middle-order batsman Suresh Raina has been named captain of the Indian team to tour Zimbabwe for the ODI tri-series in Zimbabwe and the T20 internationals. Virat Kohli, who was dropped for the T20 World Cup, was named vice-captain.

 

The BCCI senior selection committee rested, on expected lines most of the regular players. With the national team having a tight schedule, there were indications of the key players being rested for this tour.

 

Among the batsmen, M.S. Dhoni, Sachin Tendulkar, Yuvraj Singh, Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag were rested. Zaheer Khan, Ashish Nehra, Harbhajan Singh, and Praveen Kumar made way for other bowlers.

 

In the absence of the regular openers, M. Vijay and Dinesh Karthik are expected to open. Seamers R. Vinay Kumar and Umesh Yadav who are presently in West Indies have also been retained. Seamers Pankaj Singh and Ashok Dinda, and wicket keeper Naman Ojha who had a fairly successful IPL (377 runs) were the newcomers into the squad.

 

Off-spinner R. Ashwin who had made the squad national previously also made the cut. Leg-spinner Piyush Chawla will join the team for T20 matches. India goes in with three spinners in Ashwin, Pragyan Ojha and Amit Mishra. The all-rounder slot went to Ravindra Jadeja. Piyush Chawla will join the T20 squad.

 

Rohit Sharma and Yusuf Pathan hold on to their slots in the middle order. Dinesh Karthik has been named the specialist wicketkeeper for the tour.

 

The tri-series, also involving Sri Lanka, kicks off in Bulawayo on May 28, with the Twenty20s slated for June 12 and 13.

 

India squad : Suresh Raina (captain), Virat Kohli (vice-captain), Dinesh Karthik (wicketkeeper), Rohit Sharma, Yusuf Pathan, Ravindra Jadeja, Murali Vijay, R. Ashwin, Umesh Yadav, Vinay Kumar, Ashok Dinda, Pankaj Singh, Amit Mishra, Pragyan Ojha, Naman Ojha.