Sreesanth makes the final cut

The seamer, who was not part of the India's original World Cup squad and came in as injury replacement for Praveen Kumar, played the opening game of the competition and then only in the final here.After playing the opening Group B match against Bangladesh, he had to wait for 42 days to play his next game and that turned out to be the final against Sri Lanka here Saturday.The temperamental Kerala speedster had bowled only five overs against Bangladesh Feb. 19, costing him and India 53 runs. For the next six weeks he warmed the bench, cheering the progress of the team as Nehra came into reckoning.Nehra, who bowled impressively during India's 29-run victory over arch-rivals Pakistan in Wednesday's high-voltage semifinal, sustained multiple fractures on the middle finger of his right hand while fielding and Sreesanth had to be perforce included.India's skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who felt it safe to go in with three seamers against Sri Lanka on the Wankhede pitch rather than two spinners, took the gamble of picking Sreesanth over offie Ravichandran Ashwin.

Anjitha:1130