All-rounder Ravindra Jadeja has been selected in India’s 15-member squad for the Sri Lanka tour while because of a hamstring injury off-spinner Harbhajan Singh had to be left out from the team.

Jadeja was rewarded for his fine performances in the Ranji Trophy in which he scored over 700 runs at over 67 per innings and picked 42 wickets.

However, right hand batsman from Delhi Virat Kohli was dropped from the team announced by BCCI joint secretary Sanjay Jagdale after a meeting of the selectors. Indian skipper MS Dhoni also attended the meeting.

In the absence of Harbhajan Singh, Hyderabad spinner Pragyan Ojha will take the responsibility of the spin department.

The Indian team would assemble in Chennai on January 25, practise under lights at the Chidambaram Stadium and then leave for Colombo the next day.

The selectors ignored leading Mumbai’s leading run-getter Ajinkya Rahane and wicket-taker Dhawal Kulkarni from the team. Moreover, comeback man Laxmipathy Balaji of Chennai who snared 36 wickets in seven ties has also not been included in the team.

However, Praveen Kumar, the seamer from UP, who did not have a great Ranji season has been included in the team. Kumar has missed out the entire ODI series against England.

The team consists of seven frontline batsmen, including captain and stumper Dhoni, three all-rounders, four pace bowlers and spinner Ojha. The first two ODIs of the series would be played at the Rangiri Dambulla International cricket stadium on January 28 and 30.

The Indian team would play five ODIs and a Twenty20 match in Sri Lanka.

The squad: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain), Virender Sehwag (vice-captain), Sachin Tendulkar, Yuvraj Singh, Gautam Gambhir, Rohit Sharma, Yusuf Pathan, Zaheer Khan, Ishant Sharma, Pragyan Ojha, Munaf Patel, Irfan Pathan, Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja and Praveen Kumar.