PTI

Perth, Jan 21: As news filtered in about Sourav Ganguly's omission from the one-day squad for the forthcoming triangular series, the mood in the Indian camp on Sunday turned somber with the team wondering what destiny had in store for one of the greatest one-day cricketers in the world.

Ganguly staged one of the most dramatic comebacks last year by returning to the team after 16 months in wilderness. The pugnacious left-hander did not stop at that and has been the team's second most consistent one-day batsman with 1240 runs from 32 matches with no less than 12 fifties.

His overall career average of 41.02 is better than when he was left out in September 2005. Only Sachin Tendulkar, with 1425 runs from 33 games, has done better than him.

The issue among cricketers is not only the omission of Ganguly but also the manner in which selectors have chosen to go about it. Ganguly deserved to be forewarned about his fate for a graceful exit if that is how the selectors were planning the future.

His stature and form deserved this decency. As cricketers filtered in and out of each other's rooms, the two selectors present in Australia, Ranjib Biswal and Venkatapathy Raju, locked themselves in their rooms.