Injured Sreesanth keeps others hopeful

Shanthakumaran Sreesanth has a habit of finding himself in the news for all the wrong reasons.

Shanthakumaran Sreesanth has a habit of finding himself in the news for all the wrong reasons. This time,however,the pacer from Kerala hasnt done anything to irk the selectors,cricket board or team management. That his name is in the spotlight ahead of the team selection in Chennai on Saturday is because of the fact that he is still uncertain for the upcoming Test series against England.

Sreesanth,who missed the Caribbean tour due to an elbow injury,has gone to England for the final phase of his treatment and the selectors expect him to be fit. But the bowler himself is not certain till he gets the nod from his personal physician.

Abhimanyu Mithun tops the list of replacements if Sreesanth misses the bus. But at least two selectors are impressed with Varun Aarons pace and want him to get a feel of the English wickets. The Jharkhand pacer,who can bowl at 150 kmph,would be the surprise inclusion if he is preferred ahead of Mithun.

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Also,at least one selector is interested in Irfan Pathan. The left-arm swing bowler,who last played a Test match for India in April 2008,is reportedly in the process of getting back his rhythm and a selector feels he could be a handy customer in English conditions. Given that this selection committee has a habit of springing surprises they brought Piyush Chawla back from oblivion ahead of the World Cup Pathans case couldnt be completely ruled out.

But the real surprise could be the return of Wasim Jaffer if Virender Sehwag is still unfit. According to reports,Sehwag would be fit by the time the second Test starts and the selectors might request the BCCI to include him as the provisional 17 th member.

But in that case they would be forced to pick another specialist opener apart from Gautam Gambhir. Murali Vijay once again bungled an opportunity to present his case as he got out cheaply in the second innings of the Barbados Test as well.

And with Abhinav Mukund not inspiring too much confidence,the selectors might fall back on someone who is already tried and tested. Even at 33,Jaffer is performing consistently in domestic cricket. He scored 940 runs in 10 first class matches,at 78.33,last season. Additionally he has knowledge of English conditions and has scored runs during Indias tour of England in 2007.