Reports of senior players retiring baseless: Team India

ADELAIDE: Miffed with reports that its senior players were contemplating retirement after failing in the Test series loss to Australia, the Indian team management on Saturday rejected the speculation as "baseless" and refused to answer queries on the matter.

India were whitewashed 0-4 in the Test series that concluded on Saturday and the senior batting trio of Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman were heavily criticised for their poor show.

Their flopshow, in fact, led to speculation that the three could bow out after the series. But the team management rubbished the rumours.

"The team management categorically denies this. Reports about senior players retiring are baseless," said team manager G S Walia in the post-match press conference on Saturday.

Walia refused to answer questions on the matter, saying that there was simply no truth in the reports.

India's stand-in skipper Virender Sehwag, who addressed the media after the match, also rejected reports of senior players' retirement.

"Some reports have said that senior players will retire after this series. No such thing has happened and this is a decision that they will take," said the dashing opener, who is himself under immense pressure after an unimpressive show in the series.

"These are rumours created by the media," he added.

Earlier there were reports that the 39-year-old Dravid, one of the game's greatest batsmen, had told some of his teammates that he had decided to hang his boots.

Dravid, like most other Indian batsmen, had a poor run in the four-Test series. He made 194 runs at an average of 24.25 in this series.

Dravid has already announced his retirement from one-day cricket and Twenty20.

The elegant right hander, nicknamed 'The Wall' for his dour defence, is the second highest run getter in Test history with 13,288 runs, behind only Tendulkar who has 15,470 runs. He has 36 Test centuries with a highest score of 270 and an average of 52.31.

Dravid has also taken more catches (210) than anyone else in Test history during his 164 Test matches since he made his debut against England at Lord's in 1996. He captained India from December 2005 to August 2007.

There is also a question mark over Laxman who too had a miserable run against Australia in the current series but there was no word yet about his future plans.

The iconic Tendulkar is another player under tremendous pressure.

The right-hander, whose career has spanned over two decades so far, has 99 international hundreds to his credit but the wait for the 100th one has been rather prolonged with his last century coming almost a year back.