Deposed skipper Mohammed Azharuddin keeps his place in the middle order and Vinod Kambli is back in the team while Sanjay Manjrekar and Venkatapathy Raju are among those dropped.
The national cricket selectors could not take a decision on whether to reinstate Navjot Singh Sidhu, who left the team on his own in the middle of the recent England tour, as the cricket control board is yet to decide on his plea to be reinstated.
The selectors preferred to play safe and did not spring any major surprise while naming the 14-member squad for the forthcoming Singer series in Colombo and Sahara Cup in Canada. The only new face is Karnataka paceman David Johnson. Apart from Manjrekar and Raju, others dropped are Harendra Hirwani, Salil Ankola and Paras Mhambrey. Besides Kambli, off-spinner Ashish Kapoor also returns to the squad.
Left-hander Kambli, who had earlier been dropped on disciplinary grounds, replaces Manjrekar in the batting lineup. Kambli's come- back was made easier by his written apology for his conduct dur- ing the Wills World Cup. According to the Cricket Board secretary Jagmohan Dalmiya, Kambli has given a written apology saying that there won't be a repeat of such misconduct and that he wants to play for the country again.
Dalmiya said that the team will have a conditioning camp in Madras from August 13 to 22, before leaving for Sri Lanka.
THE TEAM:
Sachin Tendulkar (captain), Anil Kumble (vice-captain), Vikram Rathore, Ajay Jadeja, Saurva Ganguly, Mohammed Azharuddin, Vinod Kambli, Rahul Dravid, Nayan Mongia, Javagal Srinath, Venkatesh Prasad, David Johnson, Sunil Joshi and Ashish Kapoor.
India's new skipper Sachin Tendulkar who visited Calcutta Saturday morning from Mumbai to participate in selecting the new team has dismissed the fear that added pressure of captaincy might affect his performance in the field. Sachin talking to reporters said that although he had been quite prepared to lead India for a long time now, it sill came as a surprise. ''I am concerned about the country first. My own satisfaction comes next. Whatever is important for my country, I am willing to do,'' he said.
Sachin, believed to be a man of a different fibre than this predecessor, said: ''I am determined to perform better and I don't feel there will be any extra pressure on me.''
Sachin, however, had a word of praise for his ex-captain Azharuddin. He also ruled out any possibilities of Azhar facing ego problems under his captaincy.