MUMBAI: He might have had to wait longer than others but Robin Uthappa’s consistent show and patience finally paid off on Monday when the Bengaluru batsman was named in the squad for the final two one-dayers of the Sri Lanka series.
Uthappa will not only be back in the team but will also keep wickets as Wriddhiman Saha has been rested with a view to try out more players ahead of the World Cup.
Nursing a finger injury, Rohit Sharma too made an expected return to the ODI team after cracking a magnificent 142 in the tour game before the series. With Dhoni too recovering from a thumb injury, Virat Kohli will continue to lead the side for the remainder of the series.
Big-hitting middle order batsman Kedar Jadhav too was included in the squad. Jadhav, had smashed three-half centuries in a row in Australia for India A but had missed the tour games against West Indies earlier owing to an injury. He played in the lone tour game against Sri Lanka but was dismissed for zero.
Board secretary Sanjay Patel said that the selectors wanted to try out more options ahead of the Australia tri-series and the World Cup. “Saha was not named in the squad as we wanted to try our more options and test them before the World Cup.”
Interestingly, Ishant Sharma, who is injured was also included in the squad but won’t be picked for the two games. “He is under physio’s guidance and undergoing rehab.
He will travel with the team and our physiotherapist will look after him. He is not part of the team as such. For training, it was decided that he should travel.”
