India names team for 1st test against SAfrica

MUMBAI, India (AP) Former captain Rahul Dravid, middle-order batsman Yuvraj Singh, paceman Shanthakumaran Sreesanth and wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik have been left out of India’s squad for the first test against South Africa next month.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India named a 15-man squad Thursday, bringing in new faces to replace injured regulars.

Middle-order batsman Subramanium Badrinath, wicketkeeper-batsman Wriddhiman Saha, and medium-fast bowlers Abhimanyu Mithun and Sudeep Tyagi were the inclusions.

Dravid, who suffered a fractured jaw against Bangladesh at Dhaka on Monday, has been advised three weeks’ rest while Yuvraj Singh was ruled out of the series due to an injury to his left wrist, a BCCI press release said.

Sreesanth suffered a hamstring strain against Bangladesh and will be expected to be fit for the second test.

Saha, who was selected ahead of Dinesh Karthik, had scored 318 runs at 38.75 in the domestic Ranji Trophy competition this season.

Badrinath was one of only six specialist batsmen in the squad and therefore looks set to make his test debut against South Africa.

Mithun was the leading wicket taker in the Ranji Trophy, claiming 47 at 23.23, while Tyagi had made a one-day international appearance for India.

The first test will be played in the western Indian city of Nagpur from Feb. 6-10. The squad will be reviewed before the second test in Calcutta from Feb. 14-18.

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Squad: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Sachin Tendulkar, V.V.S. Laxman, Murali Vijay, Subramanium Badrinath, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Wriddhiman Saha, Ishant Sharma, Pragyan Ojha, Amit Mishra, Abhimanyu Mithun, Sudeep Tyagi.

Updated January 28, 2010