Nagpur: Gautam Gambhir was today named captain of the Indian team for the first two matches of the ODI series against New Zealand starting on November 28 with the selectors opting to rest five senior players, including regular skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
Dhoni, Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh were not considered due to injury concerns as a 14-member ODI squad was announced today after a selection committee meeting.
"MS Dhoni, Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh were not considered due to injury concerns, which require attention and rehabilitation," BCCI secretary N Srinivasan said in a statement.
Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan and Ashish Nehra, who were part of the squad for the ODI series against Australia last month, were left out.
Wicket-keeper Wriddhiman Saha, Ravindra Jadeja, Yusuf Pathan and S Sreesanth were recalled to the ODI sqaud.
The selectors also announced the Test team for India's tour of South Africa next month with Dhoni as the captain and all the other four senior players rested for the ODI series against New Zealand returning.
Saha also found a place in the 17-man Test squad, the same as paceman Umesh Yadav.
Jaydev Unadkat, who was named in place of Zaheer Khan for the ongoing third Test against New Zealand here, was also retained in the squad.
Team for first two ODIs against New Zealand: Gautam Gambhir (captain), Murali Vijay, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Sourav Tiwary, Wriddhiman Saha (wicketkeeper), R Ashwin, Praveen Kumar, R Vinay Kumar, Munaf Patel, S Sreesanth, Yusuf Pathan, Ravindra Jadeja.
Team for Test Series against South Africa: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain), Virender Sehwag (vice-captain), Gautam Gambhir, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Suresh Raina, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Ishant Sharma, S Sreesanth, Murali Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara, Wriddhiman Saha, Jaydev Unadkat, Umesh Yadav, Pragyan Ojha. PTI
