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Laxman out, Devang Gandhi in
for Dhaka Test

Faisal Shariff in Bombay

The Indian cricket team for the Asian Test Championship final, if the side manages to make it that far, has been announced. The team is as follows: Mohammed Azharuddin (captain), Anil Kumble (vice-captain), S Ramesh, Devang Gandhi, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Saurav Ganguly, Nayan Mongia, Javagal Srinath, Laxmi Ratan Shukla, Ashish Nehra, Sunil Joshi, Harbhajan Singh, Hrishikesh Kanitkar.

Hyderabadi opener V V S Laxman has lost his place to the robust Devang Gandhi of West Bengal, who has a string of good scores to his credit. Laxman was dropped for lack of form.

India thus begins another experiment with its opening pair. Ramesh, however, has been the find of the year. His good string of scores in all the matches he has played so far has cemented his place in the side.

Ajit Wadekar, chairman of the selectors, said the lanky southpaw has a good positive attitude and is a sweet timer of the ball. He comes across as a thorough strokeplayer, though he needs to develop on his hook and the square-cut, the former Indian captain and manager noted.

Pace bowler Venkatesh Prasad has been rested. Fellow Karnataka paceman Javagal Srinath, who returns after a one-Test layoff, fills the void.

Supporting Srinath will be new left-arm paceman Ashish Nehra who made his Test debut against the Sri Lankans in Colombo last month. Though Nehra met with limited success, the selectors thought he bowled pretty well.

Interestingly, skipper Mohammed Azharuddin is captain only till the Dhaka Test.

The Sri Lankans face Pakistan in the last league match of the Asian Test Championship in Lahore. With four points in their drawn match against India, the Lankans need seven points to oust India from the final.

Pakistan, with 17 points from one game, are already through to the final.

Lanka, however, start as the underdogs simply because they are without six key players. The six out with injuries are Arjuna Ranatunga, Aravinda De Silva, Chaminda Vaas, Sanath Jayasuriya, Muttiah Muralitharan and Nuwan Zoysa.