Balanced team selected for World Cup, says BCCI

Mumbai: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Thursday stated that the probable's list for the 2015 World Cup, which the organisation released earlier in the day, was a balanced team and the players had been shortlisted after proper deliberation by the selectors.

"It is a very balanced team selection. After a lot of deliberation and inputs by all the selectors, the probable's list was finalised. I think proper weightage has been given to the performance as well as the requirement of the Indian team to play the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand," BCCI secretary Sanjay Patel told the media.

Speaking on the dropping of senior members of the cricket team from the squad, Patel said that the team selection had been made keeping in mind the performances in domestic games.

"The young boys have been selected after due deliberations. The names of the seniors were also discussed but the performance in the domestic circuit and the requirement of the time has been considered," he stated.

"Considering the future of the team after the World Cup has also been in the thought process of all the concerned parties," he added.

Earlier in the day, senior players Virender Sehwag, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Gautam Gambhir and Yuvraj Singh, all of whom were part of the 2011 World Cup winning squad, were axed from the 30-man probable's squad.

Other players who have been dropped include Yusuf Pathan, Piyush Chawla and Ashish Nehra.