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Shalabh Kumar

There is very little doubt about what the composition of the Indian team is going to be for the World Cup.

If that sounds presumptuous, keep in mind that there is unlikely to be much experimentation for the World Cup. In any case, reputations and past records have always been considered more important than current form in the selection of the Indian team.

As a result, a number of players will select themselves on the strength of their past records and experience.

The final composition of the 15 -- that is, the number of batsmen, bowlers and allrounders, wicket-keepers, etc is a critical question. A balanced 15 will have either of the following two compositions: (1) 6 batsmen, 2 batting allrounders, 2 bowling allrounders, 1 wicket keeper and and 4 specialist bowlers or (2) 7 batsmen, 1 batting all-rounder, 2 bowling allrounders, 1 wicketkeeper and 4 specialist bowlers.

There might be some worry about not having a reserve wicket-keeper, but I think we could get by with just one. The team in either case will be selected from: Batsmen: Tendulkar, Ganguly, Dravid, Azharuddin and Jadeja, who are definitely going to be a part of the 15, unless disaster, in the shape of injury, strikes. The one or two remaining slots will probably be filled from the following three: S Ramesh, A Khurasia and Kambli (if fit).

Ramesh has done enough in the recent Test series to deserve a trial. He could be a crucial back-up to Dravid for the No.3 slot and even Ganguly for the No.2 slot, in case either player needs to be rested for any reason. A strong case could be made for both Khurasia and Kambli. The best way forward would be to actually give both a chance in the coming ODI series and let performance dictate selection.

Bowlers: Srinath, Prasad and Kumble select themselves. If the World Cup were being played in the sub-continent, there could be some doubt about Prasad, but definitely not for one in England. The choice of the fourth specialist bowler will be between Nikhil Chopra and Sunil Joshi. The coming ODIs should be a test of skill and form for these two, with performance, once again, dictating selection.

Batting Allrounders: Robin Singh is a certain selection. Kanitkar would probably be the second man in if the selectors pump for one additional 'bits and pieces' player. The fact that, for English conditions, Ganguly can definitely be considered a batting allrounder, however, makes the case for an additional 'bits and pieces' player weak.

Bowling Allrounders: Agarkar, if fit, should be a certainty and if young Shukla performs in the coming ODIs he should also make the cut. If Agarkar is not fit, there is definitely one slot open for a medium pacer. Unfortunately, there are no bowling allrounders in the list of probables. The only option would be to select Mohanty as a fourth medium-pacer in the squad of 15.

Wicketkeeper: Is there an alternative to Mongia? There is an outside chance that a reserve wicket keeper might be included, though I consider that quite unlikely.

If you count the players listed above, the total number of contenders is exactly 19 - the number the selectors need to short-list from the list of 30. That is one of the reasons why I believe that selecting the 19 out of the 30 is not really a big deal.

Out of this 19, 11 (including Agarkar) are almost definite. Since the available number of slots for the World Cup is really only 4, it makes sense to have a shorter list of contenders.

The other reason for selecting the 19 now is that it allows for trying out these players in actual ODIs to check their World-cup readiness. The bench-strength needs to be tested and established very quickly.

The coming triangular series in the sub-continent and in Sharjah have three basic objectives - to switch the established players to ODI mode again, to finalise the bench strength and to start working out strategies. To achieve these objectives, we will need to play all the contenders in the coming two series. This will mean resting some of the regulars in one or the other series and experimenting with some options.

Against Pakistan and Sri Lanka, we should test out S Ramesh, as an opener, and A Khurasia in the middle-order, by resting Ganguly and Jadeja. Similarly, Shukla should definitely be tried as the new ball partner for Srinath. We know that Robin Singh can often be promoted up the order if need be to accelerate the run-rate. To build options in this area, Shukla should also be tried in a pinch-hitter's role. After all, it was his hitting at the top of the order for Bengal which brought him to the national stage.

Some variations similarly need to be tried in the bowling department. Both Chopra and Shukla should be tested out in the slog overs - there is no better test of ODI bowling skills than bowling the last few overs with the batsmen going after everything. Joshi should be brought in for Chopra in some matches to help compare their performances.

The playing XI for the triangular should be -- Tendulkar, S Ramesh, Dravid, Azharuddin, Khurasia, Robin Singh, Mongia, Shukla, Srinath, Chopra, Kumble.

If Khurasia, Ramesh and Shukla perform reasonably well, or show promise, then they should be persisted with in Sharjah. The other players to be tested should be tried out in the Sharjah triangular where some certain selections could be rested. Resting Tendulkar, Dravid, Azharuddin, Srinath, Mongia and Kumble makes sense as this would give these players a much needed break before the World Cup. There is opportunity then to bring back Ganguly, Jadeja, Agarkar and Prasad into the team while continuing to try out some of the other contenders.

Suggested playing XI for Sharjah: Ganguly, S Ramesh, Kambli (if fit, otherwise Dravid), Jadeja, Khurasia, Robin Singh, Shukla, Agarkar, Prasad, Chopra (or Joshi). Saba Karim could be played for this series with the objective of giving Mongia a break.

Quite clearly, this will mean that we will not be fielding the best team in all the matches of the coming triangulars. It really doesn't matter - the World Cup must be the focus. This scheme allows proper match practice for everyone, including the non-regulars.

The World Cup is going to be a long haul - 5 league matches and 3 super-league matches before the semi-finals. The team will need to play the non-regulars in some matches, otherwise by the semi-finals stage, which we all hope they will make it to, the players will be a jaded lot. It would be impossible for Srinath and Prasad, for example, to play at peak level for eight matches on the trot. If you do rest one of them, you would want the replacement to be match-ready, wouldn't you?

It now only remains to hazard a guess on who would be in the final 15. My list: Tendulkar, Ganguly, Dravid, Azharuddin, Jadeja, Robin Singh, Mongia, Srinath, Chopra, Kumble, Prasad, Agarkar (if fit, otherwise Mohanty), Ramesh, Kambli (if fit, otherwise Khurasia) and Shukla.