Sreesanth to share attack with Zaheer in Tests (Lead)

Fast bowler Shanthakumaran Sreesanth makes a surprise comeback to the Indian Test side after more than a year while a fit Zaheer Khan expectedly finds a place in the 15-member squad for the first two cricket Tests against Sri Lanka.

The national selectors, who met here Tuesday, also recalled left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha while Tamil Nadu batsmen Murali Vijay and Subramaniam Badrinath also found a place in the side.

With a third spinner coming in, there is no place for a third seamer and so Munaf Patel and Ashish Nehra could not get in.

Sreesanth, whose last Test was against South Africa in 2008, has had his share of controversies off the field and had been issued a final warning by the Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) over disciplinary issues. In fact it is the last chance for the 26-year-old to resurrect his international career.

Zaheer has recovered well from the shoulder injury he sustained during the Indian Premier League (IPL) in South Africa. Though he hasn't missed a Test match after getting injured, he has missed out on ODIs.

While Sreesanth's comeback was surprising, the exclusion of Munaf and Nehra was baffling.

Munaf played a crucial role, picking five wickets in India's 10-wicket win over New Zealand in the Hamilton Test. India won the three-match series 1-0.

Nehra also made an impressive return to international cricket and spearheaded the Indian attack in Zaheer's absence. He had a good run in the Champions Trophy, with eight wickets from three matches, despite India making an early exit.

The first Test is in Ahmedabad from Nov 16 while the second Test is at Kanpur from Nov 24.

Squad: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain-wicketkeeper), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, V.V.S. Laxman, Murali Vijay, Subramaniam Badrinath, Yuvraj Singh, Harbhajan Singh, Amit Mishra, Pragyan Ojha, Ishant Sharma, Zaheer Khan, S. Sreesanth.

Last updated on Nov 10^th, 2009 at 17:19 pm IST--IANS