As with any squad announcement, some players are left disappointed while others are left counting their lucky stars. In this regard, the Indian squad announcement for the ODI and T20I series against England was no different.
Yuvraj Singh, who hasn’t played an ODI since 2013 found a spot in both ODI and T20I squads while Suresh Raina, who has an impressive track record in England where India will play the ICC Champions Trophy in June was left out of the ODI squad but found a spot in the T20I squad.
Extra Cover: India vs England 2016: Yuvraj Singh, R Ashwin back in both ODI and T20I squads
The biggest news, however, was the official announcement of Virat Kohli as the captain of both the ODI and T20I sides with MS Dhoni’s decision to step down from limited-overs captaincy. With the likes of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja both picked for both squads, some players were unlucky.
Here are 5 players who were unlucky to miss out on a spot in the Indian ODI and T20I squads to face England:
Deepak Hooda
With MS Dhoni’s resignation from limited-overs captaincy and the likely shift to No.4, there was a vacancy in the finisher role. While there have been plenty clamoring for Suresh Raina and Yuvraj Singh, Deepak Hooda can certainly count himself unlucky to not have got a chance.
With a first-class average in excess of 50 and List-A average of over 40 and some handy off-spin in his kitty as well, Hooda could have been a brilliant addition to the squad. He has already shown his finishing prowess with Rajasthan Royals and the fact that he is just 21 doesn’t hurt his chances as well.
Selectors have shown that they are giving preference to current form and having scored nearly 800 runs in this year’s Ranji Trophy at an average of over 70, he is in great form as well and lost out by virtue of lack of experience to Raina and Yuvraj.
Dhawal Kulkarni
If there is one area where India have always struggled with it is fast bowlers. Only recently have they managed to find a few bowlers who can nail their death overs and not concede too many runs while picking up wickets as well. Dhawal Kulkarni is someone who has shown he can do just that.
One of the most impressive performers for Gujarat Lions in last year’s IPL, he showed excellent control with the new ball, which he swung as well. He certainly would have made more sense than Umesh Yadav, who has been preferred in Tests rather than limited-overs.
The fact that he impressed in the Quadrangular A series in Australia, where he finished as the leading wicket-taker for India and impressed in the limited opportunities that he got as well make him someone who was unlucky not to get the nod.
Karun Nair
After impressing in the recently concluded Test series versus England and the ODI series against Zimbabwe last year, Karun Nair would have thought that he has done enough to get a spot in the Indian limited-overs squad. But he was left disappointed as he didn’t get picked in not just the ODI but also the T20I squad.
What makes his omission all the more surprising is the fact that Rohit Sharma is yet to recover from his injury that ruled him out of the upcoming series and Ajinkya Rahane isn’t fully fit yet. As someone who can play as both an opener and a middle-order batsman, the 25-year-old can certainly count himself unlucky.
With an unbeaten triple century to his name in his last Test and a career list-A average of nearly 40 and some impressive performances in the IPL, Karun Nair was certainly unlucky to miss out on a spot in the squad.
Shahbaz Nadeem
With five more Tests to go before the start of the IPL, many thought that the likes of Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin will be rested for the limited-overs series against England. And as the leading wicket-taker in the Ranji Trophy, Shahbaz Nadeem certainly fancied his chances of making it in.
But the fact that both spinners were picked and his similarity to Ravindra Jadeja, who is also an accurate left-arm spinner, meant that despite picking up more than 100 wickets in the last two seasons of the Ranji Trophy, the 27-year-old didn’t find a place in the squad.
With India playing no more limited-overs matches before the ICC Champions Trophy and the Test line-up already settled with several spinners ahead of him in the pecking order, it looks as though Nadeem will have to wait for a while before he gets his Indian call-up.
Kuldeep Yadav
Despite the seemingly endless well of great spinners that India continue to draw on from, one type of spinner that they have never been able to call on is a chinaman. While there have been several leg spinners and off-spinners who have flourished, a chinaman has never quite made it.
And that is why Kuldeep Yadav can count himself unlucky to not make the squad for the ODIs or T20Is. While the presence of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja as the first-choice spinners means that there wasn’t a lot of room for him, his impressive IPL and first-class performances should certainly have been taken into account while selecting the third spinner.
But Amit Mishra’s performance in the ODIs against New Zealand meant he was a certainty in the ODI squad but it was surprising to see that even he was dropped in favor of Yuzvendra Chahal in the T20I squad. On top of that, India’s decision to pick just three spinners also had an impact in his omission.
Brand-new app in a brand-new avatar! Download Cric Rocket for fast cricket scores, rocket flicks, super notifications and much more!
