Talent. What is it about this six-letter word that gets sports fans on the edge of their feet? In a cricketing context, is it the audaciousness of a stroke played by a batsman or the way a young fast bowler runs in and bamboozles the opposition with his searing pace, that befuddles you, and you&#8217;re like: &#8220;Here&#8217;s someone for the future&#8221;?

But, according to Harsha Bhogle, talent can, at times, be one of the most useless things to possess because ultimately, it is not what you have that matters, it is what you do with that talent, which eventually decides the course of your journey. And, we have seen, too many outrageously talented cricketers- courtesy the lack of temperament- squander the chance of becoming one of the greats in the name, ending up as an unfulfilled dream for their fans.

Here&#8217;s a look at the top 5 unfulfilled talents of the 21st century-

<img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-139279" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/Robin-Uthappa-4.jpg" alt="Robin Uthappa Kolkata Knight Riders" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"><figcaption id="caption-attachment-139279" class="wp-caption-text">Robin Uthappa. (Photo Source: Twitter)</figcaption>

A dream debut at the age of 21 where he dazzled with a match-winning 86 against England; a spot in the 2007 World Cup team; a consistent performer in the 2007 T20 World Cup campaign; a member of India&#8217;s historic tri-series win in Australia.

But why did a batsman, who was a combination of gorgeous strokeplay and steely nerves, like the ones that he displayed during that miraculous run-chase against England in 2007 didn&#8217;t have an illustrious international career?

But as is the case with many precocious talents of the past, Utthappa&#8217;s inconsistency did him no good and with the emergence of the likes of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, he soon lost his place in the national side in the summer of 2008. Uthappa would carry on making heaps of runs in both domestic cricket and the IPL and while he did get a recall after six years, the chances of make him it big at the International level were well and truly over.

<img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-350057" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/CT_364413.jpg" alt width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"><figcaption id="caption-attachment-350057" class="wp-caption-text">Sri Lankan cricketer Ajantha Mendis (Photo credit should read Ishara S.KODIKARA/AFP/Getty Images)</figcaption>

He started off as the ultimate &#8216;mystery&#8217; man who could bowl the leg-break, off-break, carrom ball, flipper, top-spinner with death-defying ease. And, India experienced it first hand when Ajantha Mendis made a debut in the 2008 Asia Cup where he bamboozled their famed batting-unit with figures of 6-13 in the finale.

But, as India would later find it, it would serve just as a trailer. Mendis soon made his Test debut in the home series against the Men in Blue where- barring <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/the-return-of-hardik-pandya-will-make-a-huge-difference-to-the-indian-team-virender-sehwag/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Virender Sehwag</a>&#8211; he kept all the likes of Sachin, Dravid, Laxman at sea, picking up 8-132 in his debut Test.

The wiley spinner proceeded to break Alec Bedser&#8217;s record for most wickets(26 wickets) in a maiden Test series before shellacking Ajit Agarkar&#8217;s record of being the fastest to 50 ODI wickets (19 games).

Mendis is one of the rare set of bowlers to take a five-wicket haul in each of the three formats of the game and the first to claim two six-fers in T20I cricket. But, as with most of the mystery spinners, his decline was as rapid as his surge and with the likes of Rangana Herath, Sachithra Senanayake putting up consistent performances, he was soon dropped from the set-up, playing his last match for the national side in 2015.

<img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-384941" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/S.-Sreesanth.jpg" alt="S. Sreesanth" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"><figcaption id="caption-attachment-384941" class="wp-caption-text">S. Sreesanth. (Photo Source: MANAN VATSYAYANA/AFP via Getty Images)</figcaption>

Another one of those outrageously talented cricketers, who, thanks to his temperament, could not really cash-in on the rich pedigree. Sreesanth had probably one of the most perfect seam positions and when on song, he would bamboozle even the best of batting units, like South Africa found out twice in Johannesburg (2006) and Durban (2010) or Australia (2-12) during the T20 World Cup semi-final in 2007.

But Sreesanth&#8217;s (over) aggressiveness often used to get the better of him. His discipline or the lack of it mirrored his off-field persona and with his performances taking a steady decline, the fast bowler was soon shown the door after the 2011 World Cup.

And, any chances of making a comeback were well-and-truly squandered when he was accused of spot-fixing in the IPL 2013. Though he has been cleared of all the charges now, there is little or no chance of him making it to the national side.

<img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-272926" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/Mohammad-Ashraful.jpg" alt="Mohammad Ashraful" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"><figcaption id="caption-attachment-272926" class="wp-caption-text">Mohammad Ashraful of Bangladesh. (Photo by Graham Crouch/Getty Images)</figcaption>

Mohammad Ashraful. What&#8217;s the first thing that comes to one&#8217;s mind after hearing his name? Talented? Outrageously talented? The first World Class batsman from Bangladesh? Future legend? All of the above? Not surprising. Whoever saw a 17-year-old Mohammad Ashraful flay the star-studded Sri Lankan attack as he became the youngest batsman to score a Test hundred, felt that the precociously talented teenager is destined for greatness. Bangladesh fans even thought that they have got their own version of <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/sachin-tendulkars-final-odi-xi-in-2012-where-are-they-now/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Sachin Tendulkar</a>.

But, as with many other prodigies, the weight of expectations was too much to handle for Ashraful. He would show glimpses of his talent sporadically as he did during another majestic Test hundred- this time against India in 2004- or when he spearheaded Bangladesh&#8217;s miraculous win over Australia in 2005, amidst long spells of mediocrity, much to the disappointment of his fans.

Ashraful&#8217;s career came to a screeching halt after he admitted that he had done spot-fixing to lose a game during the 2013 edition of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL). It was a sad stop to a career that promised a lot but eventually ended as an unfulfilled dream with mediocrity- 2737 runs in 61 Tests at an average of 24.01 and 3468 runs in 178 ODIs at 22.09-  and underachievement written all over it.

<img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-409475" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/Mohammad-Asif.jpg" alt="Mohammad Asif" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"><figcaption id="caption-attachment-409475" class="wp-caption-text">Mohammad Asif. (Photo by Hamish Blair/Getty Images)</figcaption>

&#8220;Nah. Mohammad Asif by a country mile. If I was in good form, he made sure I wasn&#8217;t in good form a couple of weeks later after playing him. And if I wasn&#8217;t in good form, I definitely knew I wasn&#8217;t after playing him a couple of weeks in a series&#8221;- This was Kevin Pietersen&#8217;s reply when he was asked whether Mitchell Johnson was the most difficult bowler he faced in his career during an interview to PakPassion.

Pietersen isn’t alone. Most of the celebrated batsmen of the mid to late 2000s like AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla have hailed Asif as the best bowler they faced in their career ‘by a country mile’. And, those who saw Asif in his pomp, would second that view.

Asif wasn&#8217;t your quintessential express fast bowler like <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/lost-a-friend-and-a-father-figure-shoaib-akhtar-pays-tribute-to-bob-woolmer-on-his-13th-death-anniversary/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Shoaib Akhtar</a> or Brett Lee but his complete mastery on moving the ball- in and out- viciously off the seam, is what made him a class apart.  His complete annihilation of the famed Indian batting attack where- to the complete bewilderment of the likes of VVS Laxman and Virender Sehwag- he made the ball move wickedly off the seam made him a folk hero in Pakistan and an upcoming star in World cricket.

Did he? Of course, he didn&#8217;t! Why not? That is because Asif- the fast bowler and Asif, as an individual were two completely different identities. His penchant for drugs, brawl with teammates (Read: Shoaib Akhtar) and hard cash, paved way for that fateful July day in 2010 when he, along with skipper Salman Butt and teenage prodigy Mohammad Amir was caught in the spot-fixing scandal.

Asif was handed a seven-year ban, and when his plea was rejected by the Court of Arbitration (CAS), curtains officially fell on one the most unfulfilled talents of the 21st century, leaving the fans with the never-ending query: &#8216;What could have been?&#8221;

Honourable mentions: Irfan Pathan, Shaun Marsh, James Faulkner, Mohammad Amir, Shane Bond

Talent. What is it about this six-letter word that gets sports fans on the edge of their feet? In a cricketing context, is it the audaciousness of a stroke played by a batsman or the way a young fast bowler runs in and bamboozles the opposition with his searing pace, that befuddles you, and you’re like: “Here’s someone for the future”?
But, according to Harsha Bhogle, talent can, at times, be one of the most useless things to possess because ultimately, it is not what you have that matters, it is what you do with that talent, which eventually decides the course of your journey. And, we have seen, too many outrageously talented cricketers- courtesy the lack of temperament- squander the chance of becoming one of the greats in the name, ending up as an unfulfilled dream for their fans.
<h3>Here’s a look at the top 5 unfulfilled talents of the 21st century-</h3>
<h3>1. Robin Uthappa</h3>
<figure id="attachment_139279" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-139279" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"><amp-img class="size-full wp-image-139279" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/Robin-Uthappa-4.jpg" alt="Robin Uthappa Kolkata Knight Riders" width="640" height="400" layout="responsive" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"></amp-img><figcaption id="caption-attachment-139279" class="wp-caption-text">Robin Uthappa. (Photo Source: Twitter)</figcaption></figure>
A dream debut at the age of 21 where he dazzled with a match-winning 86 against England; a spot in the 2007 World Cup team; a consistent performer in the 2007 T20 World Cup campaign; a member of India’s historic tri-series win in Australia.
But why did a batsman, who was a combination of gorgeous strokeplay and steely nerves, like the ones that he displayed during that miraculous run-chase against England in 2007 didn’t have an illustrious international career?
But as is the case with many precocious talents of the past, Utthappa’s inconsistency did him no good and with the emergence of the likes of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, he soon lost his place in the national side in the summer of 2008. Uthappa would carry on making heaps of runs in both domestic cricket and the IPL and while he did get a recall after six years, the chances of make him it big at the International level were well and truly over.

<h3>2. Ajantha Mendis</h3>
<figure id="attachment_350057" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-350057" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"><amp-img class="size-full wp-image-350057" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/CT_364413.jpg" alt width="640" height="400" layout="responsive" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"></amp-img><figcaption id="caption-attachment-350057" class="wp-caption-text">Sri Lankan cricketer Ajantha Mendis (Photo credit should read Ishara S.KODIKARA/AFP/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>
He started off as the ultimate ‘mystery’ man who could bowl the leg-break, off-break, carrom ball, flipper, top-spinner with death-defying ease. And, India experienced it first hand when Ajantha Mendis made a debut in the 2008 Asia Cup where he bamboozled their famed batting-unit with figures of 6-13 in the finale.&nbsp;
But, as India would later find it, it would serve just as a trailer. Mendis soon made his Test debut in the home series against the Men in Blue where- barring <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/the-return-of-hardik-pandya-will-make-a-huge-difference-to-the-indian-team-virender-sehwag/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Virender Sehwag</a>– he kept all the likes of Sachin, Dravid, Laxman at sea, picking up 8-132 in his debut Test.
The wiley spinner proceeded to break Alec Bedser’s record for most wickets(26 wickets) in a maiden Test series before shellacking Ajit Agarkar’s record of being the fastest to 50 ODI wickets (19 games).
Mendis is one of the rare set of bowlers to take a five-wicket haul in each of the three formats of the game and the first to claim two six-fers in T20I cricket. But, as with most of the mystery spinners, his decline was as rapid as his surge and with the likes of Rangana Herath, Sachithra Senanayake putting up consistent performances, he was soon dropped from the set-up, playing his last match for the national side in 2015.

<h3>3. S Sreesanth</h3>
<figure id="attachment_384941" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-384941" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"><amp-img class="size-full wp-image-384941" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/S.-Sreesanth.jpg" alt="S. Sreesanth" width="640" height="400" layout="responsive" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"></amp-img><figcaption id="caption-attachment-384941" class="wp-caption-text">S. Sreesanth. (Photo Source: MANAN VATSYAYANA/AFP via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>
Another one of those outrageously talented cricketers, who, thanks to his temperament, could not really cash-in on the rich pedigree. Sreesanth had probably one of the most perfect seam positions and when on song, he would bamboozle even the best of batting units, like South Africa found out twice in Johannesburg (2006) and Durban (2010) or Australia (2-12) during the T20 World Cup semi-final in 2007.
But Sreesanth’s (over) aggressiveness often used to get the better of him. His discipline or the lack of it mirrored his off-field persona and with his performances taking a steady decline, the fast bowler was soon shown the door after the 2011 World Cup. 
And, any chances of making a comeback were well-and-truly squandered when he was accused of spot-fixing in the IPL 2013. Though he has been cleared of all the charges now, there is little or no chance of him making it to the national side.

<h3>4. Mohammad Ashraful</h3>
<figure id="attachment_272926" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-272926" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"><amp-img class="size-full wp-image-272926" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/Mohammad-Ashraful.jpg" alt="Mohammad Ashraful" width="640" height="400" layout="responsive" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"></amp-img><figcaption id="caption-attachment-272926" class="wp-caption-text">Mohammad Ashraful of Bangladesh. (Photo by Graham Crouch/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>
Mohammad Ashraful. What’s the first thing that comes to one’s mind after hearing his name? Talented? Outrageously talented? The first World Class batsman from Bangladesh? Future legend? All of the above? Not surprising. Whoever saw a 17-year-old Mohammad Ashraful flay the star-studded Sri Lankan attack as he became the youngest batsman to score a Test hundred, felt that the precociously talented teenager is destined for greatness. Bangladesh fans even thought that they have got their own version of <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/sachin-tendulkars-final-odi-xi-in-2012-where-are-they-now/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Sachin Tendulkar</a>.
But, as with many other prodigies, the weight of expectations was too much to handle for Ashraful. He would show glimpses of his talent sporadically as he did during another majestic Test hundred- this time against India in 2004- or when he spearheaded Bangladesh’s miraculous win over Australia in 2005, amidst long spells of mediocrity, much to the disappointment of his fans.
Ashraful’s career came to a screeching halt after he admitted that he had done spot-fixing to lose a game during the 2013 edition of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL). It was a sad stop to a career that promised a lot but eventually ended as an unfulfilled dream with mediocrity- 2737 runs in 61 Tests at an average of 24.01 and 3468 runs in 178 ODIs at 22.09-&nbsp; and underachievement written all over it.

<h3>5. Mohammad Asif</h3>
<figure id="attachment_409475" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-409475" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"><amp-img class="size-full wp-image-409475" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/Mohammad-Asif.jpg" alt="Mohammad Asif" width="640" height="400" layout="responsive" style="max-width: 100%; margin: 0;"></amp-img><figcaption id="caption-attachment-409475" class="wp-caption-text">Mohammad Asif. (Photo by Hamish Blair/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>
“Nah. Mohammad Asif by a country mile. If I was in good form, he made sure I wasn’t in good form a couple of weeks later after playing him. And if I wasn’t in good form, I definitely knew I wasn’t after playing him a couple of weeks in a series”- This was Kevin Pietersen’s reply when he was asked whether Mitchell Johnson was the most difficult bowler he faced in his career during an interview to PakPassion.
Pietersen isn’t alone. Most of the celebrated batsmen of the mid to late 2000s like AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla have hailed Asif as the best bowler they faced in their career ‘by a country mile’. And, those who saw Asif in his pomp, would second that view.
Asif wasn’t your quintessential express fast bowler like <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/lost-a-friend-and-a-father-figure-shoaib-akhtar-pays-tribute-to-bob-woolmer-on-his-13th-death-anniversary/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Shoaib Akhtar</a> or Brett Lee but his complete mastery on moving the ball- in and out- viciously off the seam, is what made him a class apart.&nbsp; His complete annihilation of the famed Indian batting attack where- to the complete bewilderment of the likes of VVS Laxman and Virender Sehwag- he made the ball move wickedly off the seam made him a folk hero in Pakistan and an upcoming star in World cricket.
Did he? Of course, he didn’t! Why not? That is because Asif- the fast bowler and Asif, as an individual were two completely different identities. His penchant for drugs, brawl with teammates (Read: Shoaib Akhtar) and hard cash, paved way for that fateful July day in 2010 when he, along with skipper Salman Butt and teenage prodigy Mohammad Amir was caught in the spot-fixing scandal.
Asif was handed a seven-year ban, and when his plea was rejected by the Court of Arbitration (CAS), curtains officially fell on one the most unfulfilled talents of the 21st century, leaving the fans with the never-ending query: ‘What could have been?”
Honourable mentions: Irfan Pathan, Shaun Marsh, James Faulkner, Mohammad Amir, Shane Bond

Talent. What is it about this six-letter word that gets sports fans on the edge of their feet? In a cricketing context, is it the audaciousness of a stroke played by a batsman or the way a young fast bowler runs in and bamboozles the opposition with his searing pace, that befuddles you, and you&#8217;re like: &#8220;Here&#8217;s someone for the future&#8221;?
But, according to Harsha Bhogle, talent can, at times, be one of the most useless things to possess because ultimately, it is not what you have that matters, it is what you do with that talent, which eventually decides the course of your journey. And, we have seen, too many outrageously talented cricketers- courtesy the lack of temperament- squander the chance of becoming one of the greats in the name, ending up as an unfulfilled dream for their fans.
<h3>Here&#8217;s a look at the top 5 unfulfilled talents of the 21st century-</h3>
<h3>1. Robin Uthappa</h3>
<figure id="attachment_139279" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-139279" style="width: 640px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-139279" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/Robin-Uthappa-4.jpg" alt="Robin Uthappa Kolkata Knight Riders" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"><figcaption id="caption-attachment-139279" class="wp-caption-text">Robin Uthappa. (Photo Source: Twitter)</figcaption></figure>
A dream debut at the age of 21 where he dazzled with a match-winning 86 against England; a spot in the 2007 World Cup team; a consistent performer in the 2007 T20 World Cup campaign; a member of India&#8217;s historic tri-series win in Australia.
But why did a batsman, who was a combination of gorgeous strokeplay and steely nerves, like the ones that he displayed during that miraculous run-chase against England in 2007 didn&#8217;t have an illustrious international career?
But as is the case with many precocious talents of the past, Utthappa&#8217;s inconsistency did him no good and with the emergence of the likes of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, he soon lost his place in the national side in the summer of 2008. Uthappa would carry on making heaps of runs in both domestic cricket and the IPL and while he did get a recall after six years, the chances of make him it big at the International level were well and truly over.

<h3>2. Ajantha Mendis</h3>
<figure id="attachment_350057" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-350057" style="width: 640px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-350057" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/CT_364413.jpg" alt width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"><figcaption id="caption-attachment-350057" class="wp-caption-text">Sri Lankan cricketer Ajantha Mendis (Photo credit should read Ishara S.KODIKARA/AFP/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>
He started off as the ultimate &#8216;mystery&#8217; man who could bowl the leg-break, off-break, carrom ball, flipper, top-spinner with death-defying ease. And, India experienced it first hand when Ajantha Mendis made a debut in the 2008 Asia Cup where he bamboozled their famed batting-unit with figures of 6-13 in the finale. 
But, as India would later find it, it would serve just as a trailer. Mendis soon made his Test debut in the home series against the Men in Blue where- barring <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/the-return-of-hardik-pandya-will-make-a-huge-difference-to-the-indian-team-virender-sehwag/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Virender Sehwag</a>&#8211; he kept all the likes of Sachin, Dravid, Laxman at sea, picking up 8-132 in his debut Test.
The wiley spinner proceeded to break Alec Bedser&#8217;s record for most wickets(26 wickets) in a maiden Test series before shellacking Ajit Agarkar&#8217;s record of being the fastest to 50 ODI wickets (19 games).
Mendis is one of the rare set of bowlers to take a five-wicket haul in each of the three formats of the game and the first to claim two six-fers in T20I cricket. But, as with most of the mystery spinners, his decline was as rapid as his surge and with the likes of Rangana Herath, Sachithra Senanayake putting up consistent performances, he was soon dropped from the set-up, playing his last match for the national side in 2015.

<h3>3. S Sreesanth</h3>
<figure id="attachment_384941" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-384941" style="width: 640px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-384941" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/S.-Sreesanth.jpg" alt="S. Sreesanth" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"><figcaption id="caption-attachment-384941" class="wp-caption-text">S. Sreesanth. (Photo Source: MANAN VATSYAYANA/AFP via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>
Another one of those outrageously talented cricketers, who, thanks to his temperament, could not really cash-in on the rich pedigree. Sreesanth had probably one of the most perfect seam positions and when on song, he would bamboozle even the best of batting units, like South Africa found out twice in Johannesburg (2006) and Durban (2010) or Australia (2-12) during the T20 World Cup semi-final in 2007.
But Sreesanth&#8217;s (over) aggressiveness often used to get the better of him. His discipline or the lack of it mirrored his off-field persona and with his performances taking a steady decline, the fast bowler was soon shown the door after the 2011 World Cup. 
And, any chances of making a comeback were well-and-truly squandered when he was accused of spot-fixing in the IPL 2013. Though he has been cleared of all the charges now, there is little or no chance of him making it to the national side.

<h3>4. Mohammad Ashraful</h3>
<figure id="attachment_272926" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-272926" style="width: 640px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-272926" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/Mohammad-Ashraful.jpg" alt="Mohammad Ashraful" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"><figcaption id="caption-attachment-272926" class="wp-caption-text">Mohammad Ashraful of Bangladesh. (Photo by Graham Crouch/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>
Mohammad Ashraful. What&#8217;s the first thing that comes to one&#8217;s mind after hearing his name? Talented? Outrageously talented? The first World Class batsman from Bangladesh? Future legend? All of the above? Not surprising. Whoever saw a 17-year-old Mohammad Ashraful flay the star-studded Sri Lankan attack as he became the youngest batsman to score a Test hundred, felt that the precociously talented teenager is destined for greatness. Bangladesh fans even thought that they have got their own version of <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/sachin-tendulkars-final-odi-xi-in-2012-where-are-they-now/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Sachin Tendulkar</a>.
But, as with many other prodigies, the weight of expectations was too much to handle for Ashraful. He would show glimpses of his talent sporadically as he did during another majestic Test hundred- this time against India in 2004- or when he spearheaded Bangladesh&#8217;s miraculous win over Australia in 2005, amidst long spells of mediocrity, much to the disappointment of his fans.
Ashraful&#8217;s career came to a screeching halt after he admitted that he had done spot-fixing to lose a game during the 2013 edition of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL). It was a sad stop to a career that promised a lot but eventually ended as an unfulfilled dream with mediocrity- 2737 runs in 61 Tests at an average of 24.01 and 3468 runs in 178 ODIs at 22.09-  and underachievement written all over it.

<h3>5. Mohammad Asif</h3>
<figure id="attachment_409475" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-409475" style="width: 640px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-409475" src="https://crictracker-admin-panel-08032022.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/media/attachments/Mohammad-Asif.jpg" alt="Mohammad Asif" width="640" height="400" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px"><figcaption id="caption-attachment-409475" class="wp-caption-text">Mohammad Asif. (Photo by Hamish Blair/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>
&#8220;Nah. Mohammad Asif by a country mile. If I was in good form, he made sure I wasn&#8217;t in good form a couple of weeks later after playing him. And if I wasn&#8217;t in good form, I definitely knew I wasn&#8217;t after playing him a couple of weeks in a series&#8221;- This was Kevin Pietersen&#8217;s reply when he was asked whether Mitchell Johnson was the most difficult bowler he faced in his career during an interview to PakPassion.
Pietersen isn’t alone. Most of the celebrated batsmen of the mid to late 2000s like AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla have hailed Asif as the best bowler they faced in their career ‘by a country mile’. And, those who saw Asif in his pomp, would second that view.
Asif wasn&#8217;t your quintessential express fast bowler like <a href="https://www.crictracker.com/lost-a-friend-and-a-father-figure-shoaib-akhtar-pays-tribute-to-bob-woolmer-on-his-13th-death-anniversary/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Shoaib Akhtar</a> or Brett Lee but his complete mastery on moving the ball- in and out- viciously off the seam, is what made him a class apart.  His complete annihilation of the famed Indian batting attack where- to the complete bewilderment of the likes of VVS Laxman and Virender Sehwag- he made the ball move wickedly off the seam made him a folk hero in Pakistan and an upcoming star in World cricket.
Did he? Of course, he didn&#8217;t! Why not? That is because Asif- the fast bowler and Asif, as an individual were two completely different identities. His penchant for drugs, brawl with teammates (Read: Shoaib Akhtar) and hard cash, paved way for that fateful July day in 2010 when he, along with skipper Salman Butt and teenage prodigy Mohammad Amir was caught in the spot-fixing scandal.
Asif was handed a seven-year ban, and when his plea was rejected by the Court of Arbitration (CAS), curtains officially fell on one the most unfulfilled talents of the 21st century, leaving the fans with the never-ending query: &#8216;What could have been?&#8221;
Honourable mentions: Irfan Pathan, Shaun Marsh, James Faulkner, Mohammad Amir, Shane Bond

These players looked destined to make it big at the international level. But unfortunately, they didn't.

5 Unfulfilled talents of the 21st century

Talent. What is it about this six-letter word that gets sports fans on the edge of their feet? In a cricketing context, is it the audaciousness of a stroke