Sporting Life - India Cricket | Cricket World Cup, India News, India Scores, India Profiles, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Harbhajan Singh.

INDIA PROFILES

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Rahul Dravid (c)

Born: 11.01.1973
ODIs: 313
Role: Batsman
Bat: Right-hand
Average: 40.01
Strike-Rate: 70.76
Bowl: Right-arm offspin
Average: 42.50
Economy: 5.48

'The Wall' has established himself as one of the more astute captains in the past few years, but he will have to go some to shepherd India's infuriatingly inconsistent side to success in the Carribean. A strike rate in the early seventies isn't brilliant, but his average of just shy of 40 proves his steadying influence on a team containing the expansive likes of Dhoni and Tendulkar.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni

Born: 07.07.1981
ODIs: 69
Role: Keeper-batsman
Bat: Right-hand
Average: 44.15
Strike-Rate: 98.51
Bowl: n/a
Average: n/a
Economy: n/a

It takes a special player to eclipse Adam Gilchrist, but that's exactly what Dhoni did in just his sixth ODI. Dhoni broke the record for the highest one-day score by a wicketkeeper, slaughtering the Sri Lankan attack with a murderous 183 runs from 145 balls. Dhoni excites the cricket-mad Indian public to the extent that he recently required a police escort to have a haircut.

Sachin Tendulkar

Born: 24.04.1973
ODIs: 384
Role: Batsman
Bat: Right-hand
Average: 44.05
Strike-Rate: 85.73
Bowl: Right-arm legspin
Average: 43.76
Economy: 5.04

An average in the mid-forties and a strike rate comfortabley in the eighties prove that you can trust statistics, and Tendulkar's moutainous collection of international centuries do even more to back his claim as the finest of a generation blessed with great batsmen. He could also be classed an ODI all-rounder, as he's invariably called upon for ten overs of handy legspin.

Sourav Ganguly

Born: 08.07.1972
ODIs: 289
Role: Opening batsman
Bat: Left-hand
Average: 41.36
Strike-Rate: 73.70
Bowl: Right-arm medium
Average: 37.21
Economy: 5.05

In one of the more unlikely comebacks, Ganguly has squeezed back into the Indian side. after being removed from the side in 2006. There seemed to be no way back for Ganguly, but poor form from his replacements allowed him back in, and he looks to have shored up a spot at India's problem position of opener after a 98 on his return to ODIs against the West Indies.

Virender Sehwag

Born: 20.10.1978
ODIs: 170
Role: Batsman
Bat: Right-hand
Average: 31.62
Strike-Rate: 96.63
Bowl: Right-arm offspin
Average: 40.22
Economy: 5.22

Largely included in the squad for his experience and versatility, Sehwag will have to put in some strong performances to justify his place in the side. Inconsistent form that has lasted for almost two years now have seen the previously untouchable big-hitter in and out of the Indian side. However, when he gets it right there are few that can match him.

Yuvraj Singh

Born: 12.12.1981
ODIs: 166
Role: Batsman
Bat: Left-hand
Average: 35.53
Strike-Rate: 86.67
Bowl: Left-arm slow
Average: 38.21
Economy: 4.90

A former one-day specialist that has transformed himself into a cornerstone of the Indian line-up, Yuvraj has destroyed some of the best bowling attacks in world cricket. An all-round performer with his occasional left-arm spin and superb fielding, Yuvraj makes the World Cup squad despite a knee problem sustained during the ICC Champions Trophy.

Robin Uthappa

Born: 11.11.1985
ODIs: 11
Role: Batsman
Bat: Right-hand
Average: 36.42
Strike-Rate: 114.34
Bowl: Right-arm medium
Average: n/a
Economy: n/a

Like Dinesh Karthik, Uthappa started out as a wicketkeeper, but has subsquently given up the gloves to concentrate on his batting, and it has paid dividends. A heavy hitter with a wide range of shots, he was the man who replaced the enigmatic Sehwag in the final one-dayer against England in 2006, hitting 86 then and has impressed in the rare chances he has had since.

Dinesh Karthik

Born: 01.06.1985
ODIs: 11
Role: Batsman
Bat: Right-hand
Average: 20.71
Strike-Rate: 60.16
Bowl: n/a
Average: n/a
Economy: n/a

Karthik broke into the Indian side as a wicketkeeper, replacing Pathiv Patel behind the stumps in 2004, but was usurped by the free-scoring Dhoni. However, some impressive performances with the bat (notably an excellent 63 to save India in a one-dayer against the West Indies) sealed his place ahead of the more experienced likes of VVS Laxmann and Mohammed Kaif.

Irfan Pathan

Born: 27.10.1984
ODIs: 73
Role: All-rounder
Bat: Left-hand
Average: 25.15
Strike-Rate: 80.09
Bowl: Left-arm fast-med
Average: 25.91
Economy: 5.02

Only 18 months ago, Pathan was hailed as the kind of all-rounder that everyone wanted but only England had. However, an alarming dip in form saw him dropped from both the Test then the ODI sides, and was ignominiously sent home from the tour of South Africa to shape up in domestic cricket. Shape up he did, but will perhaps count himself lucky to make the final squad.

Ajit Agarker

Born: 04.12.1977
ODIs: 183
Role: All-rounder
Bat: Right-hand
Average: 15.06
Strike-Rate: 81.38
Bowl: Rt-arm fast-med
Average: 27.55
Economy: 5.03

Another one-day specialist, all-rounder Agarkar started his limited-overs career with a flourish to set a world record for the fastest bowler to 50 ODI wickets. Since then he hasn't quite made the impact that his early form promised - aside from a 21-ball fifty against Zimbabwe - but he remains perhaps India's most reliable bowlers who can chip in with the bat when needed.

Zaheer Khan

Born: 07.10.1978
ODIs: 120
Role: Bowler
Bat: Right hand
Average: 13.67
Strike-Rate: 83.22
Bowl: Left-arm fast-med
Average: 27.44
Economy: 4.87

A left-armer on the medium side of quick, Zaheer Khan can look rather innocuous in Tests, but his selection of yorkers and swingers make him an ideal one-day bowler. Left out of the side for much of 2006, Khan was one to benefit from the Indian selectors' policy of returning to old(er) guard late in the year, earning a recall alongside the likes of Argarkar and Kumble.

Sree Sreesanth

Born: 06.02.1983
ODIs: 27
Role: Bowler
Bat: Right-hand
Average: 1.40
Strike-Rate: 25.00
Bowl: Rt-arm fast-med
Average: 36.11
Economy: 5.75

Known by most simply as 'Sree', Sreesanth is one of those players that opposition fans secretly wish was in their side, while simultaneously scoffing at his antics. With genuine pace and obvious aggression, Sreesanth has the potential to fill India's fast bowling void, not convincingly occupied since the retirement of Prasad and Srinath.

Anil Kumble

Born: 17.10.1970
ODIs: 271
Role: Bowler
Bat: Right-hand
Average: 10.53
Strike-Rate: 61.06
Bowl: Right-arm legspin
Average: 30.89
Economy: 4.30

Anil Kumble is an oddity in top level cricket, in that he is a massively successful leg-spinner who doesn't appear to spin the ball an awful lot. Kumble has been largely a peripheral figure in the one-day set-up in recent years and due to the fact that he relies more on bounce than spin to take wickets may hamper his chances in the sometimes lifeless pitches of the Carribbean.

Harbhajan Singh

Born: 03.07.1980
ODIs: 149
Role: Bowler
Bat: Right-hand
Average: 12.80
Strike-Rate: 78.92
Bowl: Right-arm offspin
Average: 32.45
Economy: 4.13

After he took a lengthy spell out of the game to remodel his action, Harbhajan has never quite matched the form he showed in the initial stages of his career. Indeed, he has recently turned into more of a containing bowler than a wicket-taker, but his decent economy rate and average are slightly misleading, as he can struggle away from the helpful pitches of his homeland.

Munaf Patel

Born: 12.07.1983
ODIs: 20
Role: Bowler
Bat: Right-hand
Average: 7.75
Strike-Rate: 64.58
Bowl: Rt-arm fast-med
Average: 28.30
Economy: 4.53

Probably India's quickest bowler, Patel burst onto the scene with the best performance by an Indian pace bowler on Test debut - seven for 97 against England last year. However, despite developing considerably as a quick bowler his progress has been hampered by injuries, only able to appear sporadically for the ODI side since his debut in April 2006.