With India leading 2-0 in the 5 match Test series, they will be looking to inflict further damage on the Englishmen with the 4th Test all set to begin at the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai tomorrow.
Unfortunately, they were dealt another blow as Ajinkya Rahane was ruled out after injuring his thumb during batting practice earlier today. Manish Pandey, the prolific right-handed batsman from Karnataka was named as his replacement.
The decision to select Pandey was a questionable one as there are a lot of other cricketers who have been performing exceptionally well in the domestic circuit.
Here is the list of 5 players who could have been selected instead of Pandey.
#5 Yuvraj Singh
This Indian cricket team legend has sent another message to the selectors after a few breathtaking performances with the bat for Punjab.
After scoring a magnificent 177 against Madhya Pradesh in the 3rd round, he went on to achieve his career high score of 260 against Baroda in the subsequent round and followed that up with a composed 85 in their previous match against Uttar Pradesh.
In the five games he’s played, he has notched up 672 runs at an average of 84.00 with two fifties and two centuries to his name. He did not play in the previous two rounds as he got married to his fiance Hazel Keech on November 30th.
#4 Deepak Hooda
The 21-year-old from Baroda has been one of the only bright sparks in what has been a supremely dull season for his side which has registered just one victory in the 7 matches they have played so far.
He has amassed 780 runs in 12 innings so far at an average of 78 and a strike rate of 70.08 with 3 centuries and 2 half-centuries to his name. His highest score of 293* came against Punjab in the 2nd round of the tournament.
He was denied his opportunity to score a triple century as the rest of his team were dismissed before he could do so. He is currently the 6th highest run-getter in the tournament.
#3 Rahul Singh
This youngster who is a part of the Indian army has been one of the most consistent performers in the Ranji Trophy scoring at least a half-century in the previous 7 matches he has played for Services.
In his debut season, he has amassed 874 runs in 14 innings at an average of 72.83 with a high score of 182 against Jammu and Kashmir in the 4th round of the tournament.
While most youngsters join the army to serve the nation, Rahul had other ideas in mind. “Cricket khelne ke liye aaya main Army mein (I joined Army to play cricket), ” said Rahul in a recent interview with Cricketcountry. “I joined in sports quota and they took me only to play cricket. So I am ‘sports quota Bharti’. I joined The Army because I had a better scope with Services, ” he continued.
#2 Rishabh Pant
This 19-year-old youngster has been in the news for all the right reasons lately and has been one of the standout performers of the Ranji Trophy this season.
In the 8 matches he has played for Delhi, he has scored 927 runs at an average of 92.70 and a phenomenal strike rate of 111.95 with 4 centuries and 2 half-centuries to his name.
He has been breaking records for fun and in his previous match against Jharkhand, he broke a 28-year-old record by scoring the quickest ever century in the Ranji Trophy, achieving his feat in 48 balls.
He also became only the 2nd wicket-keeper batsman in Ranji Trophy history to score a triple century and the 3rd youngest ever to do so.
#1 Priyank Kirit Panchal
After a decent start to his campaign this season, the 26-year-old from Gujarat has been in spectacular form in the last two rounds.
He scored 288 runs in his 6th round encounter against Mumbai which included a stupendous knock of 232 not out in the first innings of that match. He followed that up with his career best knock of 314 not out in the subsequent round against Punjab which ended as a draw.
With 1022 runs to his name in 7 matches, he sits pretty on top of the table for most runs scored so far this season.
