Yuvraj, Pathan dropped; Rohit, Ojha in

MUMBAI: Struggling players Yuvraj Singh and Irfan Pathan lost their places in India's Test squad on Tuesday with the national selectors including ODI batsman Rohit Sharma and replacing an exhausted Mahendra Singh Dhoni with wicketkeeper-batsman Parthiv Patel for the three-match Test series in Sri Lanka later this month.
    
Veterans Sachin Tendulkar, Harbhajan Singh and Zaheer Khan are back in the 16-member team, along with Munaf Patel and uncapped left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha. Opener Wasim Jaffer and injured medium pacer S Sreesanth have been omitted.
    
With Dhoni opting out of the series citing fatigue, the selectors included two wicket keepers in Dinesh Kaarthick and Parthiv, who forced his way back riding on his splendid performance in domestic cricket.
    
"MS Dhoni had conveyed his request to skip the Test series to the selectors. He has accordingly been rested for the series," the BCCI said in a statement after the selection committee meeting here.
    
Jaffer was expectedly dropped and in his place in-form Delhi opener Gautam Gambhir was inducted in the squad, which has seven specialist batsmen, four pacers, three spinners and two wicket-keepers.
    
In Dhoni's absence, the squad will have a new vice-captain in Virender Sehwag.
    
While Tendulkar had been recuperating from a groin injury that forced him out to sit out of the third and final Test against South Africa in April, Harbhajan was serving a five-match ODI ban for slapping teammate S Sreesanth during the Indian Premier League.

Paceman Zaheer Khan, who did not play this year since picking up an injury in the Boxing Day Test, makes a comeback to the side while Sreesanth was not considered because of fitness concerns.
    
A surprise inclusion was 21-year-old Hyderabad left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha, who took three wickets in three Asia Cup ties, the first three ODIs of his fledgling career.
    
Injury-prone Munaf Patel was also recalled after missing the Asia Cup and forms part of the four-pronged pace attack completed by Zaheer Khan, R P Singh and Ishant Sharma.
    
Fit-again Tendulkar took his appointed spot in the line-up along with three other seniors Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly and V V S Laxman.
    
Yuvraj's omission came as a surprise  and the 26-year-old left-handed batsman, who has played 23 Tests, lost his place to young Mumbai rival Rohit Sharma whose selection was equally bewildering considering his average form in the Asia Cup.
    
Presumably, either Kaarthick or Patel would do the opener's job if necessary, though BCCI secretary Niranjan Shah did not say anything other than announcing the team members' names to the reporters.
    
The squad is set to depart on July 15 and would open the tour with a three-day tie starting on July 18. The Tests are scheduled at Colombo (first and third from July 23-27 and August 8-12) and Galle (second from July 31-August 4).
    
Team: Anil Kumble (capt.), Virender Sehwag (vice capt.), Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, VVS Laxman, Gautam Gambhir, Ishant Sharma, Zaheer Khan, R P Singh, Munaf Patel, Rohit Sharma, Dinesh Kaarthick (wk), Pragyan Ojha and Parthiv Patel (wk).
    
Suresh Raina, who missed the Test berth despite being the highest scorer for India in the Asia Cup with 372 runs at 74.40 per innings, will join the India 'A' team for the Emerging Players tournament in Australia in Parthiv Patel's place, according to Shah.
    
Raina will be the vice-captain of the side to be led by S Badrinath, the Tamil Nadu Ranji Trophy skipper and his teammate for Chennai Daredevils in the last IPL.
    
The tournament, also featuring teams from New Zealand, South Africa and hosts Australia, is set to commence in Queensland on July 14.
    
The selectors have ignored the fitness reports submitted to the BCCI by physios on Zaheer Khan's ankle injury and Sehwag's minor groin strain.
    
Karnataka State Cricket Association's physio V Muthu Kumar had said that Zaheer's Test match fitness could be assessed only after he had bowled in at least a couple of three or four-day ties.
    
But he had also mentioned that the pace bowler had shown adequate recovery (from the injury sustained in Australia) and coped up well with the work load given at the National Test players preparatory camp held at Bangalore last month-end.
    
Indian team's interim physio Nitin Patel has recommended 10 days' rest to Sehwag to recover from the groin strain he picked up during the practise session of the team held before the commencement of the Asia Cup final against Sri Lanka in Karachi on Sunday.