Suresh Raina rewarded for relentless hard work

Suresh Raina has been one of India’s most explosive batsmen in limited-overs cricket. He has played Test cricket but never was able to cement his position in the team. The last few years haven’t quite presented him significant opportunities to cheer. He had a rather forgettable Ranji season with Uttar Pradesh having scored only 105 runs at an abysmal average of 11.66.

However, he came on to his own in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, playing leading UP. He captained the team from the front and plundered 314 runs from 9 matches with a stupendous match-winning century versus Bengal. The knocks didn’t evade the eyes of the selectors and he found his way into India’s T20I squad during their tour of South Africa earlier this year.

Albeit he couldn’t pummel the bowling, the southpaw played well enough to stay in contention for additional challenges in the future. The veteran recently made a comeback to the ODI squad as well. The Men in Blue will play three matches in England and Raina was drafted in place of Ambati Rayudu who failed the mandatory yo-yo test.

Raina’s indispensability

He has had his difficulties but hasn’t let them ruffle his nerves. Rather, he has moulded the rough patches to roads of success and has shown why he is regarded to be an asset for any team he has played for. The team was extremely happy when he made a comeback in the South Africa T20Is.

“See, with someone as experienced as Raina, it is all about keeping fit and staying in shape. You don’t teach someone who has played over 200 ODIs how to bat at the international level. The upcoming T20Is against South Africa will be a good test for him now that he has proven his fitness,” a member of the team management, was quoted as saying by CricNext during India’s tour of the African nation.

“If he can show form and fitness, he could well be a vital part of the World Cup squad. You cannot buy experience that someone like Raina brings into the set-up,” the member added while highlighting Raina’s experience and credentials as a cricketer.

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