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Indian selectors have dropped experienced batsman Rahul Dravid for the first two One-day Internationals against Pakistan next month.

Dravid, 34, averages less than 10 in his last 10 one-day matches and was dropped for the final one-dayer against Australia earlier this month.

“We wanted to give him a break for a while,” chief selector Dilip Vengsarkar told a news conference on Saturday.

“He is a great player. He will be back very soon.”

Pakistan will play five one-day internationals and three tests in India from Nov. 5.

Explosive opener Virender Sehwag, dropped for the England tour due to poor form, regained his place.

Dinesh Karthik has also been dropped from the squad. Karthik, despite his fine Test form, has struggled in his last ten one-dayers, averaging 19.33 with a highest score of 44 not out. He replaced Dravid for the final ODI against Australia in Mumbai but ended the game with a duck.

Sehwag returns to the squad after a five-month break. He cracked a fiery 75 in the Challenger Trophy match today and played a part in India’s recent triumph in the ICC World Twenty20. Gambhir took his spot ahead of S Badrinath, who had replaced him for the final leg of the Australia series, in a squad that includes five openers.

Praveen Kumar, the only new face in the squad, has been one of the most consistent bowling allrounders in the domestic circuit in the past few years. He ended with 30 wickets in seven Ranji Trophy games last season, which placed him eighth on the run-charts, and backed it up with some handy cameos as well.

India squad: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain), Yuvraj Singh, Saurav Ganguly, Sachin Tendulkar, Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, Robin Uthappa, Irfan Pathan, Rudra Pratap Singh, Rohit Sharma, Murali Kartik, Zaheer Khan, Shanthakumaran Sreesanth, Harbhajan Singh, Praveen Kumar.

Source:Cricket News