Shikhar Dhawan

Bangalore: With Sachin Tendulkar’s body not at a 100 per cent, the national selectors have rested him for the three-match ODI series against Australia.

According to The Telegraph’s sources, Sachin made a request through Team India coach Gary Kirsten, on Tuesday afternoon, after his double hundred in the ongoing Test.

“Sachin conveyed that his body isn’t at a 100 per cent and a break would help... The selectors didn’t have to think twice, as they can’t take a chance with him, not with the World Cup just four months away,” one of the sources pointed out.

The earliest that Sachin can return to ODI action will now be in the five-match series against New Zealand. His last appearance was in Gwalior, eight months ago.

Regular vice-captain Virender Sehwag, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan and Pragyan Ojha have also been rested. It couldn’t be confirmed, but the buzz is that Sehwag has had a recurrence of his shoulder injury.

Chief selector Krishnamachari Srikkanth merely said: “I’m not going into details, but it’s nothing major... Quite a few players have niggles and it’s important that we rest them... Nobody should aggravate his problem, not with such a huge tournament a few months away.”

As reported in these columns, Gautam Gambhir and Ishant Sharma are still unfit.

Opener Shikhar Dhawan has got a maiden call-up and is expected to make his debut in Kochi, on Sunday, in the first ODI.

“Dhawan did very well on the A tour of England and did reasonably well in the Emerging competition in Australia... It’s a great opportunity for him,” is how another source put it.

Very strangely, the selectors haven’t named a vice-captain. That was necessary as Sehwag won’t be playing.

What’s interesting is that both Yuvraj Singh and Suresh Raina are in the squad. Yuvraj has, in the past, been Mahendra Singh Dhoni's deputy, but Raina was the stand-in captain on the May-June tour of Zimbabwe.

THE SQUAD

• Openers: Murali Vijay, Shikhar Dhawan
• Middle order: Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Saurabh Tiwary
• All-rounder: Ravindra Jadeja
• Wicket-keeper: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (capt.)
• Spinner: Ravichandran Ashwin
• New-ball bowlers: Ashish Nehra, Munaf Patel, Praveen Kumar, Ranganath Vinay Kumar
Note: Jadeja and some of the others will also be seen as spinners.