Top 8 players in the selectors’ radar to be picked for New Zealand series

The Chief Selection committee of the BCCI is all set to announce the Indian team for the upcoming New Zealand series. The series will commence on September 22 when the hosts will take on the black caps in the first Test at the Green Park stadium in Kanpur. Not many changes are expected to be made in the Test squad from the team that won against the West Indies recently. However, some spectacular show by some players in the domestic circuit, particularly the ongoing Duleep Trophy might get them a look in for the first Test match. Team India head coach Anil Kumble was himself monitoring the players up and close in the Duleep Trophy and he might have a major say in picking up the team for New Zealand series. Cheteshwar Pujara’s brilliant double ton has surely managed to keep his place safe in the squad and hence left a void for the selectors as to pick someone else in place of someone like Rohit Sharma, who hasn’t been performing in the Tests. The bowling department, despite looking settled, might see some new faces. Here are the top players who will be in the selectors’ radar to be picked for the New Zealand series: 1. Gautam Gambhir (Photo Source: Twitter) The elegant left-handed batsman Gautam Gambhir has been out of the national team for quite a long time now. But with the kind of form he has been in, he surely looks in a great touch to stage a comeback. Gambhir has been in an ominous touch since the IPL this year where he ended up as one of the top 5 leading run-getters of the season with 501 runs to his name. He carried his good form forward in the Duleep Trophy too, scoring 320 runs in 4 innings so far. He averages 80 and has hit a half-century in every inning that he has played so far. Scores of 94, 59, 90 and 77 speaks volumes about his consistency at the moment. With Shikhar Dhawan struggling to find their feet at the crease, Gambhir has a strong chance to stage a comeback. 2. Shardul Thakur Indian cricketer Shardul Thakur. (Photo credit JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images) Shardul Thakur travelled with the team to West Indies for the 4-match Test series. He did not get his chance to make his debut and thus it will only be unfair to drop him before giving him a look in. He was very impressive in the solitary match that he played in the Quadrangular A-team series in Australia. Although he returned with figures of just 2/50, his spell was hostile and created the right pressure for other bowlers to thrive in. Earlier this year, Thakur was Mumbai’s leading wicket-taker in the Ranji Trophy and had bagged 41 wickets in 11 matches with 2 five-wicket hauls to his name. He bowls with good pace up front and that reflected in his miserly economy of 2.75 in Ranji this year. Having been thoroughly consistent in the domestic format, Thakur is pretty much in the frame to make it to the squad yet again. 3. Sheldon Jackson (Photo Source: Twitter) Saurashtra batsman Sheldon Jackson might not be a very familiar name to most of the Indian cricket fans. But Jackson has been a perennial performer in the domestic circuit. His recent exploits in the Duleep Trophy for India Blue have given him a strong chance to earn the national cap. With 366 runs to his name in the series so far, he averages 183 with the bat. More importantly, his strike rate has been on the higher note as well, close to 84 – the best among the top 5 batters in Duleep Trophy so far. Jackson has 2 centuries to his name and has come up with scores of 134, 79, 105 and 48*. Jackson has been a consistent performer for Saurashtra in the Ranji Trophy and it is his consistency that gives him an edge for selection for the New Zealand series. 4. Shreyas Iyer (Photo Source: Twitter) Shreyas Iyer has been on the fringes on making his international debut for India. He has been piling on the runs in the domestic circuit in the last couple of years and shown great consistency. He was the leading run-scorer in the Ranji Trophy this year with 1321 runs to his name in 11 matches at an average of 73.18. The second best in the list was a total of 879 runs and the margin between the two speaks about Iyer’s dominion. Despite having a poor IPL season after that, Iyer came back good in the quadrangular series in Australia. In the 5 matches that he played, he aggregated 165 runs with a best of 62. Having come back to the form at the right time combined with his mountain of runs in domestic circuit will bring him the radar of the selectors today. 5. Shreyas Gopal (Photo Source: Twitter) Karnataka’s leading spin bowler Shreyas Gopal has made a strong statement by emerging as the leading wicket-taker in the ongoing Duleep Trophy. Though his team, India Green, did not make it to the finals, he was highly impressive on the personal front. He bagged 14 wickets in the 2 matches that he played at an average of 26.07. His economy of 4.63 was slightly on the higher side but given the fact that he often broke crucial partnerships, he did impress. He is the only bowler to have bagged 2 five wickets in the Duleep Trophy this year till now. He has a best of 5/123 to go along with a match-best of 9/226. 6. Kuldeep Yadav Kuldeep Yadav. (Photo Source: BCCI) The young chinaman has been impressive ever since he made his first appearance in the U19 team. Kuldeep Yadav has emerged as the leading wicket-taker in the Duleep Trophy this year along with Shreyas Gopal. Playing for the India Red, Yadav has bagged 14 wickets in 4 innings thus far at an economy of 4.12 and strike rate of 42.8. He has a 6-wicket haul to his name that boosts his chances of getting into the eyes of the selectors. Although the team has a balanced spin department with Ravi Ashwin and Amit Mishra in the frame, Yadav could bring in a new variation if India opts to play with 3 spinners. Kuldeep Yadav has carried his good form from the IPL to the longer format which tells a great deal about his adaptability. Indian coach Anil Kumble must have taken a notice of the same. 7. Manish Pandey Manish Pandey India A bats during the Cricket Australia Winter Series match. (Photo by Matt Roberts – CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images) Manish Pandey has time and again proved to be a consistent performer in the limited opportunities that he has got. The Karnataka batsman had struck a brilliant match-winning ton in the only ODI that he got to play earlier this year in Australia. He was impactful in the IPL too where he came out all guns blazing for the Kolkata Knight Riders. He emerged as the leading run-getter in the recently concluded quadrangular A-team series where he amassed 359 runs in 7 matches at an average of 59.83 and a strike rate of 94.47. With 2 centuries to his name, he stamped his authority on the tournament for sure. If the selectors go for a like-for-like replacement of Rohit Sharma, Manish Pandey might well be the obvious pick in the squad. 8. Shahbaz Nadeem Delhi Daredevils cricketer Shahbaz Nadeem. (Photo by MANAN VATSYAYANA/AFP/Getty Images) Jharkhand’s leading bowler since the last two domestic seasons, Shahbaz Nadeem, would put forth his candidature to make a cut to the national side. With Jadeja not being in the best of forms in the West Indies series, Nadeem might get a look in as the left arm spinner option in the squad. Nadeem was the leading wicket-taker in the Ranji Trophy earlier this year, where he scalped 51 wickets in 9 matches at an average of 19.62 and an economy of 2.84. He will be solely relying on his heroics in the Ranji Trophy to help his chance of making it to the national side. Whether he gets a look in or not is secondary, but his name is one of the top names to be discussed in the selection committee for sure. Nadeem’s accuracy and the ability to bowl long spells could come in handy if he gets picked up. Also read: India v New Zealand: India’s predicted Test squad

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Top 8 players in the selectors’ radar to be picked for New Zealand series

7. Manish Pandey

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