Former Australian pace spearhead and MRF Pace Foundation director Glenn McGrath has said that making a comeback in the Indian team will not be easy for pacer Zaheer Khan, says a report in The Times Of India.
Speaking to Times Now, McGrath said that coming back in a young side will be difficult for Zaheer, who has returned from a fitness-training stint in France. "Zaheer has to get honest with himself. He has to work hard and keep wickets for return," said McGrath.
Zaheer was dropped from the Test team in December last year, during the home series against England that India lost. His last limited-overs international was in October 2012.
McGrath also said that it's good to coach a player like Virender Sehwag and he will provide all necessary help to the Delhi batsman in regaining his lost form. "It's great that Viru has come to MRF foundation. Where else can you face such a quality bowling. Facilities here are second to none. It's great opportunity for any batsman to train under quality pace attack, said McGrath.
Sehwag may make the cut
Meanwhile a report in Indian Today says that a month or two before, Team India had two dynamic openers in Shikhar Dhawan and Murali Vijay -- both in their twenties, a suitable left-right combination and equally aggressive at the crease, piling up century stands and dismantling records, but as matches and tours went by, the sparkling form eroded and Vijay now stands a very vulnerable man.
“The Tamil Nadu opener, who made a bizarre comeback for the ODI team in Champions Trophy, travelled to West Indies, was played and dumped promptly, then dispatched to South Africa with the hope of finding form with the 'A' team for preparations. But Vijay still hasn't found success. He has averaged 16.00 in the unofficial Tests and failed to open his account in his last innings on Tuesday but instead unwittingly opened a fresh window of opportunity for those who weren't part of the original scheme of things in the Indian Test tour of South Africa,” says the report, adding that Sehwag is again right there at the top of the candidates, purely by default because Shikhar still needs an opening partner.
“Vijay failed miserably, Unmukt Chand celebrated his under-19 world cup anniversary with more bites than runs and Gambhir too hasn't got going in the English county season. It has forced the selectors to think again, given the reputation of Sehwag, the form of Vijay and the importance of a South African tour,” adds the report.
Meanwhile Deccan Chronicle writes that Murali Vijay is not in a very comfortable position right now. “An unimpressive show with the India 'A' contingent in South Africa has definitely cast a doubt on his abilities. Selectors, who were, not many months ago convinced that they had finally found the perfect solution to the openers dilemma, are now likely to be mulling over alternatives. With the door firmly closed on Gambhir, whom do the selectors turn to if they so choose to replace Vijay? Ajinkya Rahane is sure to be at the forefront of their minds seeing as how he has spent nearly three years waiting on the sidelines. He went unnoticed in his Test debut but if he is given an opportunity, will certainly look to make amends,” says the report, adding that but considering India's dismal performances in its foreign campaigns recently, would the selectors be prepared to send someone as inexperienced as Rahane into alien conditions?
“If the selectors choose to play it safe, then they are likely to fall back on the mercurial Virender Sehwag, who despite his many shortcomings, remains a dangerous customer. The fact that Sehwag scored a ton on his debut in South Africa too is likely to weigh heavily on the minds of the selectors. The swashbuckling right-hander, who fell out of favour with the selectors following his below-par performance in the series against Australia will be yearning to make a comeback to the Indian side,” says the report.
