3 Indian players who scored a fifty in their last innings but never played again

Dropping a player from the playing XI is something that is very common in cricket. Players get dropped due to poor form, for a better combination in the XI, the return of the first-choice players who were rested for the previous game etc. So, if the team has to drop a player, there are more chances that the player who is struggling to do well gets dropped on more occasions.

However, there are some unfortunate cases where the players have got dropped despite scoring at least 50 runs in their previous innings. Let us take a look at three Indian players who were dropped after scoring a fifty in the previous innings in the format.

Note: Players missing out due to an injury (like Prithvi Shaw) are not considered.

Note: Since they are still going strong in the domestic circuit, there are still chances for all three players to get into the Indian XI in the respective formats.

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#3 Faiz Fazal (ODIs)

Faiz Fazal

How often have you seen a player make his debut for his team, score an unbeaten fifty, take his team to an easy win and then not picked to represent them again? Such things rarely happen and when it happens, the player should consider himself unlucky.

This is exactly what has happened to Vidharbha opener Faiz Fazal. Fazal has been in a great run over the last couple of years as he has been scoring runs almost every single time he goes out to bat. Though he is completely on a league of his own now, he has been a consistent batsman in the domestic circuit ever since he made his debut way back in 2003.

Predominantly known as a red ball player, Fazal earned a well-deserved call-up to the Indian team in the ODI series against Zimbabwe in 2016. After warming the bench for the first two matches, Fazal made his debut in the last match of the series.

Chasing 124 to win, Fazal and KL Rahul ensured that India reached the target in 21.5 overs without losing a single wicket. While Rahul was scored 63, Fazal was unbeaten on 55. Rahul cemented his place in the ODI side but unfortunately, that was the last match for Fazal as the regular openers came back to the Indian side.

#2 Abhinav Mukund (Tests)

Abhinav Mukund

Abhinav Mukund has to consider himself unlucky for not playing more matches for India. After scoring nearly 10000 runs at a healthy average in the domestic circuit, Abhinav has established himself as one of the best red ball batsmen in the country.

It is evident by the fact that he has managed to maintain his consistency for almost one decade now. After doing all the hard work, all he managed was to play just seven matches for India in Test cricket. He made his debut for India in Jamaica in 2011 and played his last match for his country in Galle in 2017, yes, he managed to play just seven matches in six years.

In his last game for India, he scored 81 runs in the second innings against Sri Lanka and put India on top. However, he couldn't add more matches to his tally as he was dropped for the next match after the return of the regular opener KL Rahul. He was ahead of Shikhar Dhawan in the pecking order before the series started but the Delhi batsman scored a majestic 190 in the same game and cemented his place in the XI.

#1 KL Rahul (ODIs)

KL Rahul

There is no doubt about the talent KL Rahul possess as he can easily be one of the few batsmen who can be in the XI across all three formats. But, the right-hander is dealing with some issues, largely with his mind, over the last few months and is getting out cheaply on a consistent basis.

He is the third-choice opener in the ODI side for a while now and it is very difficult for him to get into the top of the order ahead of Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma. In an inconsequential 2018 Asia Cup tie against Afghanistan, Rahul opened the batting in the absence of both Rohit and Dhawan, who were given a rest for the encounter and scored a stroke-filled 60 and put on a 110-run stand for the opening wicket with Ambati Rayudu.

Both the first-choice openers returned to the side and Rahul was not given another chance in the format. He is still with the Indian ODI side and could get his chance in the coming days as an audition to the 2019 World Cup.