Replacement Indian openers high on agenda

Gautam Gambhir might not make the trip to West Indies because of a shoulder injury he sustained during the World Cup and carried through the IPL

India's selectors will meet on May 27 in Chennai to pick the squad for the Test series in West Indies in June and July. With shoulder injuries likely to rule out the regular openers, Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, the primary talking point at the meeting will be their replacements. M Vijay and Parthiv Patel are favourites at the moment to be included in the 16-man squad, ESPNcricinfo has learnt.

Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni and Zaheer Khan, who were all rested from the limited-overs leg of the West Indies tour, are likely to return for the Tests.

Vijay has opened for India in Tests, filling in for the regular openers when required. He scored his maiden Test ton against Australia in Bangalore last year. Parthiv has played only one Test since October 2004, but was used as a make-shift ODI opener in South Africa.

Yuvraj Singh has also improved his chances of making a Test comeback after his performances in the World Cup, where he scored 362 runs, took 15 wickets, and was the Player of the Tournament. He last played a Test in Sri Lanka in July 2010, after which he was dropped for the series against Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.

Virat Kohli's recent form in limited-overs matches is also likely to attract the selectors' attention. In the previous 12 months Kohli has made 1107 runs in 31 ODIs with three centuries and seven fifties. In IPL 2011, he is only five runs behind his Bangalore team-mate, Chris Gayle, who is the tournament's top-scorer with 519 runs.

Cheteshwar Pujara, who impressed with a half-century on Test debut against Australia and won a berth for the South Africa tour, is also likely to feature in the squad. Pujara sustained a knee injury during the IPL and missed a substantial part of Royal Challengers Bangalore's campaign, but is understood to have recovered now.

Squad (likely): MS Dhoni (captain & wk), M Vijay, Parthiv Patel (wk), Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Cheteshwar Pujara, Yuvraj Singh / Suresh Raina, Virat Kohli / S Badrinath, Harbhajan Singh, Amit Mishra, Zaheer Khan, Sreesanth, Munaf Patel / Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav / Jaidev Unadkat, Pragyan Ojha

Can Mumbai reduce Gayle to a sideshow?

Match facts

Friday, May 27, Chennai
Start time 2000 (1430 GMT)

	"Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, children of all ages ... fasten your seat-belts for another show"

Big Picture

In the circus that is IPL 2011, Mumbai Indians have been the trampoline artistes. They soared through the first half of the season, putting more than daylight between themselves and the rest. Then they lost steam, and began hurtling towards terra firma. At one point they even had to deal with the possibility of missing the play-offs but, almost inevitably, they bounced back with two nerve-shredding wins against Kolkata Knight Riders.

Trampoline acts are fine, but can get repetitive after a while. Meanwhile, Royal Challengers Bangalore have provided real entertainment in their corner of the circus, led by the ringmaster Chris Gayle. He has done everything for them - he has twirled his whip to tame the wildest bowling attacks, and he has juggled batting and bowling duties without breaking a sweat, all without losing the inimitable strut and swagger that are part of his persona. He has rarely failed to entertain this season, and Chepauk will love to be regaled one final time on Friday evening. If Gayle's still in town on Saturday, though, they won't be rooting for him. Chennai Super Kings are already in the final, and will have the crowd behind them for the big game.

This virtual semi-final can best be seen through the prism of various mini-battles that will make up the contest: the battle of the tenses - the present, Tendulkar v the future, Kohli; the battle of the storms - Gayle v Blizzard; and the battle of the coloured caps - Gayle v Malinga. On a flat track, and in humid conditions that could herald a dewy night, the battle that matters most could be when the coin is spun.

Form guide (most recent first)

Royal Challengers Bangalore: LWLWW
Mumbai Indians: WWLLL

Team talk

Mumbai, like the rest of us, will be surprised by the fact that James Franklin has been their batting saviour for two games on the trot. Aiden Blizzard's form is good news, but the continued struggle in the middle order isn't. Kieron Pollard's strongest suit seems to be his fielding, and Mumbai should mull bringing in Andrew Symonds for him.

The silver lining in Bangalore's defeat in the first play-off was the manner in which their batting stood up after Gayle's early exit. Still, questions need to be asked about the role of Saurabh Tiwary and Mohammad Kaif in the lower middle order.

In the spotlight

In Bangalore's previous game, a television commentator requested Virat Kohli to smile more often than he swears and frowns. Kohli promised to do so, but less than an hour later he was back to his swearing best, when a fielder fumbled off his bowling. Regardless of his demeanour, Kohli's batting has put a smile on his fans' faces in the last couple of years. Bangalore coach Ray Jennings says being passionate and fiery is an innate part of Kohli's personality, and that should not be meddled with. Yet, tantrums don't sit well with someone touted as a future India captain.

Like Kohli, Rohit Sharma is another upcoming batsman whose attitude has come under more scrutiny than his ability. If temper is Kohli's problem, Rohit's is temperament. Rohit's woes were best captured by his shocking run-out in the eliminator against Kolkata. In moments such as those, it is tough to believe that Rohit is completely switched on at all times when he is on the field. He will be watched closely in the remainder of the IPL, and when he gets his opportunity in the West Indies.

Prime numbers

• Franklin, Blizzard and Harbhajan Singh have better strike-rates than the more celebrated batsmen in the Mumbai line-up - Sachin Tendulkar, Ambati Rayudu, Rohit, Pollard and Symonds
  
• Tendulkar has hit more fours (60) than anyone else this season. Kohli is third on the list with 54.
  
• Gayle has smashed 39 sixes so far this season, well ahead of MS Dhoni, who is second with 21
  The chatter
  
  
  "Ambati Rayudu is a youngster and you let him react the way he does. He will mature. You just let him be. Harbhajan Singh has also always been aggressive. We have had characters in tennis like McEnroe ... We need characters like that in cricket."
  Sachin Tendulkar might not be a fiery character on a cricket field, but he sure likes to see some fire.

Gambhir advised four-six weeks' rest

Gautam Gambhir damaged his shoulder while fielding during the World Cup final

Gautam Gambhir could miss the limited-overs leg of India's tour of the West Indies next month following the aggravation of a shoulder injury that was sustained during the World Cup final. Gambhir, named India's captain for that part of the tour, has been advised four to six weeks' rest by Andrew Leipus, the Kolkata Knight Riders trainer, and could even miss the subsequent tour of England.

If it comes to pass, Gambhir's absence will leave India without their three best specialist openers - Virender Sehwag has recently undergone shoulder surgery and Sachin Tendulkar has been rested for the short-format games. It will also fuel the debate over the importance given to the IPL vis-a-vis international cricket, and - given that Sehwag also played through the IPL with his injury - raise questions over the responsibility of the BCCI, the IPL franchises and the players.

Gambhir played the IPL Eliminator on Wednesday, the same day Leipus wrote to the BCCI. However, Kolkata's loss to Mumbai Indians has saved Gambhir and the franchise from having to decide on his further participation in the tournament.

In his letter, addressed to BCCI secretary N Srinivasan, Leipus - a former India physio - said the player felt acute pain in his right shoulder while landing on it in the field at one point during the World Cup final against Sri Lanka at the Wankhede stadium on April 2. Subsequent scans have now revealed a serious injury that would require him to avoid throwing or batting for four to six weeks.

"Gautam arrived in Kolkata at the start of the IPL complaining of a 'sore shoulder', the onset of which occurred during the World Cup final," Leipus' letter said. "He clearly recollects a fielding incident where he landed on an outstretched arm and felt a catch deep in the shoulder. In the euphoria at the time, his attention was deservedly elsewhere and he didn't bother telling anyone about it."

... And a groin injury too Andrew Leipus' note to the BCCI also mentioned a chronic groin injury Gambhir has been carrying for two years and suggested the player underwent rehab for both the shoulder and groin problems simultaneously but stressed that he needed "active" and "daily" attention. "Both injuries are chronic and ideally require time away from the stresses of international cricket in order for them to settle and rehabilitate properly. I emphasise, however, that such rehabilitation is active ... he would require almost daily professional supervision in order to provide both hands-on manual treatment in addition to the rehabilitation programme."

Gambhir, he said, informed him of the shoulder pain when he arrived to play the IPL. "His initial complaints were pain in the shoulder and significant reduction of power in his throw. The clinical findings supported the mechanism of the onset of the acute injury, however, he did report having corticosteroid injections on two occasions over the previous few years," Leipus stated in his report, a copy of which is available with ESPNcricinfo. "Knowledge of this history leads me to suspect that any internal derangement may have been pre-existing and this recent incident (World Cup final) only served to aggravate or progress the injury (i.e. acute on chronic)," Leipus wrote.

Accordingly, Leipus said, he initiated a plan for management and rehabilitation, post which Gambhir only reported pain "intermittently". But during Kolkata's final group match at Eden Gardens on May 22, against Mumbai Indians, Gambhir winced in pain immediately after sending back a throw to the wicketkeeper from the deep. Leipus confirmed that the throw had "aggravated" the pain. The team then travelled for the Eliminator to Mumbai, where Gambhir consulted a prominent Mumbai-based surgeon and had an MRI scan taken.

"Both the doctor and myself believe that he should follow an intensive, supervised and conservative rehabilitation pathway. But for the best outcome, he will need to avoid both throwing and batting for a period of 4-6 weeks. In this regard I would expect that the BCCI medical committee would need to consider the ongoing management of Gautam's shoulder injury beyond the IPL and the possibility of his missing any immediate future tours until the shoulder is fully rehabilitated," Leipus said.

If Gambhir does indeed sit out that tour, Suresh Raina, appointed vice-captain, is likely to take over the leadership role

O'Reilly, Levi included in Rudolph-led SA A squad

Ethan O'Reilly is one of two new faces in the South Africa A squad

Albie Morkel and Colin Ingram have not been included in the Jacques Rudolph-led South Africa A squad to tour Zimbabwe and Malaysia for personal reasons. South Africa A will play in a one-day tri-series against Zimbabwe and Australia A followed by a six-team Twenty20 competition in Kuala Lumpur in June and July this year.

"Albie's wife is expecting their second child and he understandably needs to spend time at home," Andrew Hudson, convenor of selectors, said. "Colin has been on the road in India for more than four months now." Ingram was in South Africa's World Cup squad and stayed on for the IPL, where he was part of the Delhi Daredevils.

The A team will be captained by Rudolph, who also led the side against Bangladesh in April at home. Rudolph has committed himself to South African cricket after opting out of his Kolpak deal with Yorkshire last year and looks set for a national recall.

The wicket-keeping role - which has come under scrutiny in South African cricket circles as a successor to Mark Boucher has yet to be found - looks set to be shared between Heino Kuhn and Morne van Wyk. That means there is no place for Davy Jacobs, who is recovering from a broken thumb, which he sustained while playing for the Mumbai Indians in the IPL.

The squad includes regular A team participants, Vernon Philander, Dean Elgar, Loots Bosman, Ryan McLaren, Rusty Theron and Roelof van der Merwe. There are two new additions for the T20 competition in Lions pace bowler Ethan O'Reilly and Cobras opening batsman Richard Levi. Wayne Parnell has also been included in the T20 squad.

South Africa also named their emerging squad for the annual competition that is played in Australia and also features the emerging teams from New Zealand and India. Stiaan van Zyl has been named the captain of a squad that features young talent such as batsman Mangaliso Mosehle and left-arm spinner Dale Deeb.

South Africa A squad for Zimbabwe triangular: Jacques Rudolph (capt), Craig Alexander, Farhaan Behardien, Loots Bosman, Dean Elgar, Rory Kleinveldt, Heino Kuhn, Ethy Mbhalati, Ryan McLaren, David Miller, Vernon Philander, Rusty Theron, Roelof van der Merwe, Jonathan Vandiar, Morne van Wyk

South Africa A squad for Kuala Lumpur T20 tournament: Jacques Rudolph (capt), Farhaan Behardien, Loots Bosman, Richard Levi, Ethy Mbhalati, Ryan McLaren, David Miller, Ethan O'Reilly, Wayne Parnell, Vernon Philander, Rusty Theron, Roelof van der Merwe, Jonathan Vandiar, Vaughn van Jaarsveld, Morne van Wyk

South Africa Emerging Players squad: Stiaan van Zyl (capt), Kyle Abbott, Temba Bavuma, Andrew Birch, Dale Deeb, Reeza Hendricks, Richard Levi, Pumelela Matshikwe, Mangaliso Mosehle, Ethan O'Reilly, Dane Piedt, Obus Pienaar, Mthokozisi Shezi, Jon-Jon Smuts, Shaun von Berg

Tsotsobe released early by Essex

Lonwabo Tsotsobe wasn't a success at Essex and the club are angered by his comments

Lonwabo Tsotosbe, the South Africa left-arm pace bowler, has been released by Essex a week before the end of his contract. Tsotsobe's poor form during his stint with the Division Two county side and an outburst on social networking site, Twitter, are the two major reasons for his early departure.

"They [Essex] were not happy with his form," Arthur Turner, Tsotsobe's agent told ESPNcricinfo. "They expected more from him." Tsotsobe signed a short-term deal with Essex and joined them last month. In three first-class matches, he took five wickets at an average of 77.60, which prompted Essex to drop him from the first XI last week . He also played in five limited-overs matches and his eight wickets came at average of 30.25 while he had a bloated economy rate of 6.28.

Tsotosbe expressed his feelings about being dropped on Twitter on Monday when he posted. "Ive never felt like ths eva. Ths is the worst two mnths of my life. And u know wen u start regretin urself it aint gud."

Friends from back home replied to him with messages of encouragement, with many telling him to hang in and see the contract out. He replied to one by saying, "i think i shudhave stayed at home and work on my strength," and another with, "talent is over rated,its the hard work u put wt talent that gets u places. And its just impossible to work in ths environment."

His reaction stunned Essex management, who told the BBC that their hospitality to visiting players had not come under such attack in the past. "Everyone who comes into our dressing room, one of the first things they say to me is what a great place it is to play cricket, because they like the great environment," Paul Grayson, the Essex coach said. "So to hear that he said some things about the dressing room is very annoying."

Grayson also said there was no reason for him to stay around for their next fixture against Gloucestershire, which starts on Sunday. "He is not going to play next week at Bristol so he might as well go back to South Africa," Grayson said. "It's really disappointing. He has got to look at himself. We gave him a great chance to come and play some county cricket and he has not made the most of it."

Grayson added that Essex would put their feelings in a letter to Cricket South Africa. He did not go into detail about the content of the communication that Essex want to have with officials in South Africa, but it will likely deal with the public comments about the club, which Grayson reacted called "downright rude."

Tony Irish, chief executive of the South African Cricketers' Association said that "there is a social networking policy in place and the guys are well aware that there are dangers." Irish could not comment further on Tsotsobe's case in particular but said that if any player is found to have contravened the code, "they will be disciplined." Gerald Majola, the chief executive of CSA, also did not have the exact details: "If Essex want to put it all in writing I will take it up with them or with Lonwabo himself," he said.

This was Tsotsbe's first stint at a county, having previously only played club cricket in England. He was Essex's third choice overseas recruit after attempts to sign Peter Siddle and Tim Southee failed. Turner said that he "struggled with his lengths," as is the case with many bowlers when they first travel to the UK. Tsotsobe has also been in regular contact with South Africa assistant coach Vincent Barnes who said that Tsotsobe felt he was "getting better," although he had battled to adjust to the conditions, including the weather

Mumbai prevail on night of nerves

Mumbai Indians 148 for 6 (Blizzard 51, Tendulkar 36, Kallis 2-18, Shakib 2-24) beat Kolkata Knight Riders147 for 7 (ten Doeschate 70*, Munaf 3-27) by four wickets

	Aiden Blizzard's early blitz allowed Mumbai Indians the cushion to overcome a middle-overs crisis

Match Meter MI Kolkata implode at the top Reckless batting from nervous-looking batsmen reduces Kolkata to 20 for 4. MIKKR ten Doeschate fashions a comebackRyan ten Doeschate's 70 - the best for a No. 6 in this year's IPL - combines with contributions from Yusuf Pathan and Shakib Al Hasan to give Kolkata a fighting chance. MI Tendulkar, Blizzard blaze away Aiden Blizzard scores Mumbai's fastest fifty this season as they run away to 80 for 0 in the eighth over. MIKKR Time for Mumbai to get nervous The hosts lose six wickets for 52 runs to leave James Franklin and Harbhajan Singh a tricky15 to get in the last two overs. MI Ice-cool Franklin and red-hot Harbhajan Franklin keeps taking the singles, and Harbhajan provides the final six to finish the game off with four balls to spare.  Advantage Honours even

Kolkata Knight Riders began nervously, Mumbai Indians finished similarly, but it was Mumbai who booked a place in the Champions League T20 and in the semi-final equivalent of IPL 2009. What will irk Kolkata is that they were the better side for 39 overs in the previous match between these sides, but one bad over then set up this rematch in the quarter-final equivalent. Mumbai then did enough to make use on the second chance.

Kolkata's top order came out trying too hard for a big start, losing four wickets for 20, and Ryan ten Doeschate's 70 was not recovery enough on a good Wankhede track with short boundaries. A blazing start from Aiden Blizzard and Sachin Tendulkar seemed to have put to rest Mumbai's habit of muddled chases, but they choked again. For the second consecutive game, though, James Franklin scuppered Kolkata's hopes. This time, with much more on the line, he produced a less dramatic, but more assured 29.

Munaf Patel bowled smartly to capitalise on Kolkata's palpable nervous energy, taking three wickets, including those of Jacques Kallis and Yusuf Pathan. It was a subtle change-up immediately after being driven for four that sent Kallis back. The wicket-taking delivery was pitched in the same area, but was bowled with a scrambled seam and was hence a touch slower. The slice settled with a diving Tendulkar.

Gautam Gambhir, Shreevats Goswami and Manoj Tiwary concentrated just on the boundaries, in the process failing to place the good balls for singles. The dot balls mounted, and all three fell to shots they would normally not play. ten Deoschate played sensibly, though, looking for singles and punishing the bad balls. That calm rubbed off on Yusuf, their 60-run stand took the run-rate past six an over, and a big finish could not have been ruled out.

Munaf, though, returned to interrupt the comeback with more clever bowling. Convinced that the short ball would trouble Yusuf, he let his Baroda team-mate have some. The first one took a top edge for four, the second went for a single along the ground, and the third one was mistimed over midwicket. Munaf persisted, and with his fourth bouncer of the over, he sent his man back.

Ambati Rayudu, a part-time wicketkeeper, proceeded to miss ten Doeschate and Shakib Al Hasan in the next two overs. ten Doeschate went on to score the highest for a No. 6 this IPL and Kolkata got 60 in the last six, yet a blazing start to the chase was always going to knock them out. Blizzard and Tendulkar provided just that.

Blizzard relished the pace of Brett Lee, while Tendulkar took care of the spin of Iqbal Abdulla and Yusuf Pathan. A lot of class and a lot of power merged effectively to bring up the fifty in the fifth over. There was a remote semblance of redemption for Lee when he came back to remove Blizzard, but not before the batsman had hit him for four and six in that over.

Then Mumbai stumbled. Rohit Sharma ran himself out, Tendulkar fell to a sharp bouncer, and Rayudu seemed to have been sawn off. From 81 for 0 in the eighth over, Mumbai had been reduced to 103 for 4 in the 13th. A mini-partnership ensued, but Shakib trapped Pollard to make it 123 for 5. T Suman couldn't handle the nerves and holed out to long-off.

The asking-rate crept past run-a-ball for the last two overs, but a top edge off Lee's first ball brought it back to 11 off 11. L Balaji, who failed to defend 21 in the last match, didn't get a shot at redemption. The last over went to Shakib - his figures 3-0-17-2 until then - who needed to defend seven. Harbhajan lofted the second ball over midwicket, and let out a roar.