3 Indian players who deserve a longer run during the Nidahas Trophy

After losing the first two Tests of South Africa tour, the Indian team bounced back in great style winning the third Test on a very challenging wicket at the Wanderers.

The momentum they got with the victory was carried forward during the ODI series as the Virat Kohli- led side completely annihilated the hosts with a 5-1 scoreline.

India also won the T20I series that followed by a margin of 2-1 thereby emerging as the better side if the overall tour is taken into consideration.

During the limited-overs leg of the tour, Indian skipper Virat Kohli seemed hesitant to make changes to the playing XI.

Even in the inconsequential final ODI, India made just one change playing Shardul Thakur in place of Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

Though the team should always be looking to be ruthless and go for victory, it would have been better had the reserves got an opportunity to show their mettle on the foreign tour.

Now, with the seniors rested for the Nidahas Trophy in Sri Lanka, the selectors have rewarded the domestic and India A performers. However, there are a few players who have been a part of the squad for a considerable time and waiting for regular opportunities.

Here is a list of such players who deserve a longer run in the playing XI before including the newcomers.

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#1 KL Rahul

KL Rahul has a great record in T20I format

KL Rahul was a front-runner to partner Rohit Sharma during the Champions Trophy before a shoulder injury during the Test series against Australia ruled him out of action for a considerable time.

Shikhar Dhawan then displayed a great consistency and re-established himself as a part of the first choice opening pair.

When Rahul was back to fitness before the Sri Lanka series, he was termed as ‘too good a player to sit out’ and made to bat in the middle order. He could not score big and fell to Akila Dananjaya in all the ODIs.

The Karnataka batsman was thus out of contention for a spot in the ODI team since, but, got an opportunity during the T20I series against Sri Lanka in India when Shikhar Dhawan was rested.

Rahul performed splendidly slamming a couple of fifties, but, was left out again with the management preferring left-right combination of Shikhar-Rohit against South Africa.

Rahul is a good player in the T20 format and is ranked eighth in the T20I batting rankings, the only Indian apart from Kohli in the Top-10. Further, he is among the three Indians to have scored a hundred in the format and must get a longer run in the upcoming series.

#2 Dinesh Karthik

Dinesh Karthik is flexible to bat anywhere and improvises well

Dinesh Karthik made a comeback into the Indian side after a stellar show in the List A cricket in the previous domestic season.

He amassed a whopping 854 runs in just 12 innings across Vijay Hazare Trophy and Deodhar Trophy which included three hundreds and five half centuries. With the middle order slots unavailable, he was not selected for the Champions Trophy despite being in terrific form.

Karthik played well in a couple of matches during the Windies tour that followed but, was dropped for the subsequent series against Sri Lanka and Australia as Manish Pandey and Rahul returned from their respective injuries.

With no player securing the No.4 spot, he was again drafted back into the ODI line-up for the New Zealand and Sri Lanka series.

Since his comeback, the wicket-keeper batsman has scored 183 runs at an average of 61.00 in ODIs along with 84 runs in four innings in T20Is at an impressive strike rate of 171.42.

He was instrumental in taking India to victory against Sri Lanka at Mumbai and also played an important cameo of 13 in just six deliveries in the only game he featured against South Africa.

With Mahendra Singh Dhoni rested for the upcoming Nidahas Trophy, Karthik deserves to fill in the role of a specialist wicket-keeper.

#3 Axar Patel

Axar Patel deserves more opportunities with the bat

Axar Patel came into prominence after he performed splendidly for Kings XI Punjab in the IPL 2014 winning the ‘Emerging Player of the Year’ award.

He made his debut in the Bangladesh tour that followed the IPL and performed decently whenever he was given the opportunities.

However, he has always been the third spinner in the squad, first behind Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja and now behind Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav.

Patel’s ability to bowl flat makes him a useful option to stem the flow of runs during the middle overs.

His aggressive batting has been on display during the IPL, but, he does not have a great record with the bat at international level with the opportunities being limited.

After his comeback during the Sri Lanka tour, Axar has featured in eight ODIs picking 10 wickets at an impressive economy rate of 4.57.

He has been pretty expensive in the T20I format in the four games that he has played during this period but deserves a fair run given his good record in the IPL.

With Kuldeep Yadav rested for the Nidahas Trophy, he needs to be included in the playing XI. Further, he can also be tested at the No.7 spot with Hardik Pandya also not a part of the squad.