Related Links : Andrew Symonds
Mercurial all-rounder Andrew Symonds has been dropped from the Australian Squad for the upcoming Test Series in India. Symonds has been dropped based on disciplinary grounds and it is a big plus for India as the all-rounder was averaging 70 plus in the last twelve months while also doing his bit with the ball and on the field. The 15-man squad that has been selected today has a lot of surprises with quite a few relatively unknown names. The trio of Skipper Ricky Ponting, Matthew Hayden and Brett Lee come back in the Australian team after a slight layoff.
Andrew Symonds’ omission was the big story as he was a crucial player in the Australian outfit in all forms of the game. The all-rounder’s image in the team took a beating after his negligence to attend a team meeting and practice session ahead of a One Day International Series against Bangladesh in Darwin recently. On his axing for the India tour, Cricket Australia’s National Selection Panel (NSP) Chairman Andrew Hilditch explained that “Andrew Symonds was stood down for disciplinary reasons in Darwin and is now going through a process managed by Cricket Australia designed to give him time to assess whether he is fully committed to all of the things needed for a cricketer to be a member of the world’s number one team.
“Cricket Australia has told us that selectors will be advised once Andrew can be considered again for selection and we hope we can look forward to that advice in due course because as we all know, a fit and fully-committed Andrew Symonds can be a world beater.
“In the meantime, our advice was that he was not available to be considered for selection this time.” Symonds’s place has gone to another all rounder Shane Watson, but the difference is that the former can bowl off breaks along with medium pace.
Meanwhile, there are as many as four uncapped players selected in the squad which includes 27-year-old left arm pacer Doug Bollinger (of New South Wales), 25-year-old offie Jason Krejza (of Tasmania), 36-year-old leggie Bryce McGain (of Victoria) and 23-year-old fast bowler Peter Sidle (of Victoria). Infact the Selectors had done a wise thing in having all these players prior experience of the Indian conditions by having them in the Australia A squad which is currently engaged against India A in a Test and Tri-Series. The Captain of the Australia A side – Simon Katich has got his wish of coming back in the Australian Team fulfilled.
The Aussies will fly to India on September 21st with the knowledge that only four out of the 15 men have actually played Test Cricket in India before! Ironically, it is going to be the first time that Brett Lee is going to play a Test Match in India! But it will not be too difficult to adjust to the conditions as it is the winter season that is approaching in India and the only real challenge for the Aussies will be in combating the Indian spinners.