5 Indian players who deserved a chance in the West Indies tour
With the squad being announced, some huge and controversial calls were made.
One of the most controversial calls was made by the selectors when they decided to ignore Mayank Agarwal’s name from the ODI squad. When one looks at it closely, it doesn’t really make any sense as Agarwal did everything right to be called in as a backup for the injured Vijay Shankar in the recently concluded ICC CWC, he hasn’t done anything wrong to not find himself in the ODI squad.
One of the most controversial calls was made by the selectors when they decided to ignore Mayank Agarwal’s name from the ODI squad. When one looks at it closely, it doesn’t really make any sense as Agarwal did everything right to be called in as a backup for the injured Vijay Shankar in the recently concluded ICC CWC, he hasn’t done anything wrong to not find himself in the ODI squad.
Mayank Agarwal has proved that he can bat in tough conditions and score heavily, that too at a good pace. However, Agarwal would sit and wonder where he went wrong to find himself on the other side, Mayank deserved to be in the ODI squad apart from being in Tests and one can be sure that Mayank Agarwal would feel the same as well.
Mayank’s big moment is yet to come and he would most certainly look to make it count in Tests, as the first choice opener.
3. Srikar Bharat (Tests)
Srikar Bharat is one of those names that one should watch out for, in the near future. While he was unlucky to miss out on any of the three squads that’ll be taking on the Windies from the next month onwards, Srikar is an incredibly talented keeper-batsman.
He holds the record of being the first keeper to smash a triple ton in the Ranji Trophy and needless to say, he has been on the selectors’ radar for quite a while now. With Pant being the first choice keeper and with Saha back, one would suggest there’s no room to accommodate the 25-year-old.
Should Bharat come up with some breathtaking performances, he will certainly break into the Indian team and by the looks of it, his moment of glory isn’t too far away. However, Bharat would feel that he deserved an opportunity to be in Test team that would take on the Windies.
4. Karun Nair (Tests)
Ever since Karun Nair smashed a record-breaking triple ton against England back in 2016, Karun Nair has entirely disappeared from the Indian Test squad. Yes, he was in the Test squad for the away tour in England but he didn’t get to play a single game which suggests that Nair has been very unlucky to miss out on such opportunities.
His free-flowing and natural stroke-play has earned him a lot of respect and praise but with him being fitter than ever, he’ll be kicking himself to find himself back at home, away from the Test squad. Nair’s last Test appearance came against Australia in the home series of 2017.
However, it serves by no means as a testament to the incredible amount of talent that the 27-year-old from Karnataka possesses. Karun Nair would’ve felt that he deserved to be in the Test Squad and rightly so but unfortunately, it wasn’t to be.
5. Dinesh Karthik (T20Is)
Perhaps the most surprising exclusion from the T20I squad, Dinesh Karthik would find himself a bit too unlucky to miss out on the national call-up. While Dinesh hasn’t done much wrong in this format, he has established himself as a key component in the current Indian set-up, over the last two years.
His incredible talent of finishing off games for India, finally justified itself when Karthik single-handedly won the final of the Nidahas trophy for India. With no experienced finisher in the current T20I set-up, India might just miss the services of the veteran wicketkeeper-batsman.
Situations such as 40 off 20 are tailor-made for the 34-year-old. Should India find themselves in such a position, it’d be a tough ask from anyone to come and hit from the word go, something that Dinesh Karthik specializes in.
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