It was a mere formality but a poignant moment nonetheless. India announced the initial 30-member squad for the 2015 World Cup and some big names were missing from the list.
Fans world over might struggle to remember the last time Virender Sehwag, Zaheer Khan, Gautam Gambhir, Harbhajan Singh and Yuvraj Singh played an ODI for India, individually and together, and it seems the national selectors too didn’t want to put any more time and energy into their case.
But it is a significant moment in India cricket nonetheless because it formally cuts the last remaining ties with a glorious era gone by.
These players were the superstars of Indian cricket. They formed the crux of the team that brought glory to the country that was almost unheard of.
Most of them were there when India won Tests in South Africa, Australia, Sri Lanka and Pakistan. Some of them were part of that vibrant Indian team led by Mahendra Singh Dhoni that mesmerised the world with their fearless cricket at the 2007 World T20.
And all of them were crucial members of the team that lifted the World Cup on that magical April 2 night of 2011 in Mumbai. All that is well and truly part of history now.
And the selectors need to be commended for making the sensible decision of giving out a clear cut message right away rather than including them in the initial squad only to exclude them from the final group.
The players now know for sure they are not part of the mix anymore and can make their peace.
None of the five featured in an ODI in 2014 (Harbhajan hasn’t for nearly three years) and they didn’t do anything worthwhile on the domestic circuit as well. The Indian team has a good set of young players to chose from who are fit, confident and beginning to find success across the world.
Such is the abundance of talent India now have at their disposal that they can dare to think of taking on Australia in the first Test against Australia Down Under without Dhoni. And no one seems to be concerned one bit.
It’s not as if the team management or the general public had forgotten what the stars did for the country. All of them were given multiple chances, across formats, to impress one last time but it simply wasn’t to be.
That quintet did their nation proud for the decade or so they wore the India jersey. But now it’s time to move on.
The legacy that they left behind will be taken forward by the Kohlis, the Rahanes and the Aarons. It’s just the way the game is nowadays.
No hard feelings guys.
