How Indian team players performed in the Vijay Hazare Trophy group stage

The group stage of the Vijay Hazare Trophy has come to an end and we now move on to the knockouts which are due to commence on 23 December. The tournament has already seen a lot of cricketing action over the past week, with both India’s domestic and international players showing their mettle.Among players from the national team, there have been some pretty decent performances and a few mediocre ones as well, while some former players are trying to force their way back into the team on the basis of a good performanc in India’s premier domestic one-day tournament.Let’s take a look at how Indian team players fared in the group stage:

#1 MS Dhoni

Dhoni’s performance in the Vijay Hazare Trophy has been way below his standards

MAT	RUNS	AVG	HS
6	109	21.80	44

Even though his team has made it to the quarter-finals of the tournament, MS Dhoni’s performance has been far from what is expected from someone like him. He has scored just 109 runs in 5 innings with a top score of 44.

However, Dhoni has been known to be a big match player and it will be interesting to see if he raises his game in the knockout stages and proves why he is still among India’s best limited-overs batsmen.

#2 Ajinkya Rahane

Rahane continued with his good form in the Vijay Hazare Trophy

MAT	RUNS	AVG	HS
3	155	155.00	114

Mumbai may have failed to qualify for the knockout stages of the tournament, but Ajinkya Rahane made his 3 games in the tournament count by scoring 155 runs, which included a century in a losing cause.

Rahane continued his good form from the Tests against South Africa and was at ease against domestic bowling attacks. We will be hoping that his rich vein of form spills over to the upcoming ODI series in Australia too.

#3 Ravindra Jadeja

Jadeja has put up a decent all-round performance in the tournament

MAT	RUNS	AVG	HS	WKTS	AVG	BBI
5	162	40.50	134	6	34.33	2/31

The Saurashtra all-rounder had got off to a flyer in the Vijay Hazare Trophy after a century in his very first game against Madhya Pradesh. However, it all seemed to fizzle out a bit for Ravindra Jadeja as the tournament progressed.

He ended with 162 runs and 6 wickets in 5 matches as Saurashtra failed to qualify for the knockout stages of the tournament. However, Jadeja does look set to make the cut for the tour to Australia.

#4 Axar Patel

Patel has put up a good show in the tournament thus far

MAT	RUNS	AVG	HS	WKTS	AVG	BBI
6	161	40.25	75	11	16.63	3/16

Ravindra Jadeja’s primary competitor for the spot of spin-bowling allrounder in the team has been Axar Patel and it looks like the Gujarat youngster is breathing down his shoulder at the moment.

Patel has been in fine form with both bat and ball in the Vijay Hazare Trophy with 161 runs and 11 wickets to show in terms of performance. It may be difficult to keep Axar out of the national team if he performs this way in the knockout stages too.

#5 Suresh Raina

Suresh Raina has struggled to get going

MAT	RUNS	AVG	HS
4	55	13.75	29

Suresh Raina’s poor form in international cricket seems to have rubbed off on his domestic cricket too as he continues to struggle in the 2015 Vijay Hazare Trophy. Uttar Pradesh may have made it to the quarter-finals, but the southpaw has hardly contributed to it with the bat.

With less than a month left to go for the Australia series, Raina will have to pick up his game quickly or else he may soon find himself out of favour in the Indian team.

#6 Umesh Yadav

Yadav has come up trumps so far

MAT	WKTS	AVG	BBI
4	9	9.88	3/16

Umesh Yadav seems to have picked up from where he left in the final session of the Delhi Test against South Africa, as he has been in outstanding form with the ball in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.

The group stage of the tournament saw him pick up 9 wickets in just 4 games at an average of below 10. With his team reaching the quarter-finals, we could expect some more fireworks from the Vidarbha pacer

#7 Ravichandran Ashwin

Ashwin has fared quite well in the 2015 Vijay Hazare Trophy

MAT	WKTS	AVG	BBI
6	9	18.44	3/31

Team India’s premier spinner, Ravichandran Ashwin, has had a pretty good tournament so far with 9 wickets already in 6 matches and a best of 3 for 31. After a dream Test series against South Africa, the offie was expected to do well in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and he has not disappointed so far, either with bat or ball.

Since Tamil Nadu has qualified for the knockout stages, a special performance from Ashwin could help them progress further in the tournament.

#8 Amit Mishra

Amit Mishra has been in outstanding form thus far

MAT	WKTS	AVG	BBI
6	12	16.91	3/4

As his figures suggest, Amit Mishra has been one of the best bowlers in the 2015 Vijay Hazare Trophy. His highlight of his performance in the group stages of the tournament was his hat-trick against Jammu & Kashmir.

Although Haryana could not manage to progress to the knockout round of the tournament, Mishra may have done enough to assure himself a place in the team for the upcoming ODI tour to Australia.

#9 Murali Vijay

Murali Vijay has been consistent

MAT	RUNS	AVG	HS
6	233	46.60	74

Although Murali Vijay may not have had an outstanding tournament, he surely has fared quite well in the 2015 Vijay Hazare Trophy so far. With 233 runs in 6 matches at an average of 46.60 in the group stages, he has surely made a case for his selection on the ODI tour to Australia.

And there is every chance that Vijay can add to his tally considering the fact that his team has already made it to the quarter-finals.

#10 Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Bhuvneshwar has improved as the tournament has progressed

MAT	WKTS	AVG	BBI
4	7	18.42	2/22

Indian seamer Bhuvneshwar Kumar hasn’t exactly set the Vijay Hazare Trophy on fire, but he has performed quite consistently. So far, he has managed to pick up 7 wickets in his 4 matches with best figures of 2 for 22.

Bhuvneshwar still has a chance to add to his wickets tally as Uttar Pradesh have made it to the knockout stages of the tournament. His good form may prove to be crucial to India’s chances in the upcoming series against Australia.

#11 Ishant Sharma

Ishant Sharma bowled one of the best spells of the tournament

MAT	WKTS	AVG	BBI
3	6	14.50	5/21

Ishant Sharma seems to have rediscovered himself of late and has been doing quite well in the Test arena. He carried forward his Test form to the Vijay Hazare Trophy as well as he bagged a five-wicket haul in a match against Vidarbha.

Sharma has been out of the ODI scheme of things for some time now, but he could be back in contention if he continues to bowl in this manner.

#12 Varun Aaron

Aaron has been decent in the 2015 Vijay Hazare Trophy

MAT	WKTS	AVG	BBI
5	5	34.00	2/21

Varun Aaron has been a decent performer for Jharkhand in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy. He may not have taken a lot of wickets, but he has kept things tight on most occasions with an economy of 4.72.

With tough competition in the Indian pace bowling department, it will be interesting to see if Aaron is able to fight his way into contention.

#13 Cheteshwar Pujara

Pujara averaged above 50 in the 2015 Vijay Hazare Trophy

MAT	RUNS	AVG	HS
5	169	56.33	73

Indian Test batsman Cheteshwar Pujara performed quite well in the Vijay Hazare Trophy with 169 runs in 4 innings with 2 fifties and an average of just over 56.

Although it is highly unlikely that Pujara will be considered for a spot in the ODI team, the tournament has certainly helped him gather some good form, which might keep him in good stead for the tours to come.

#14 Former Players

Yuvraj Singh has been in outstanding form in the tournament

YUVRAJ SINGH

MAT	RUNS	AVG	HS
5	341	85.25	98

GAUTAM GAMBHIR

MAT	RUNS	AVG	HS
6	138	27.64	67

Former Indian batsman Yuvraj Singh has made a hard-hitting point to the national selectors through his performances in the 2015 Vijay Hazare Trophy so far. He has almost single-handedly carried Punjab into the quarter-finals and could even lead them to the title taking into account his superb form.

On the other hand, his former teammate Gautam Gambhir’s efforts have not produced the desired results. In 5 innings, he has managed to score 138 runs at a meagre average of 27.64 and an extremely low strike rate of just over 55. This is sure to have a negative impact on his already bleak chances of making it to the national team.