4 players who have an outside chance to make it to the Indian team for the 2019 World Cup

#2 Vijay Shankar

The suspension of Hardik Pandya led to the inclusion of Vijay Shankar in the ODI team and he has grabbed the opportunity with both hands.

In the 5th ODI at Wellington, India were struggling at 18-4 when Shankar joined Rayudu at the crease and provided the much needed stability. He scored a composed 45 off 64 balls and led India to a respectable total which they subsequently defended. After that ODI, Indian coach Ravi Shastri praised Shankar for his temperament.

Shankar did not pick up a single wicket in the 4 ODIs he played in the last month (1 in Australia and 3 in New Zealand). However the wickets in England may just suit his kind of bowling and he could make it to the Indian team as a handy number eight batsman and a swing bowler who could bowl 7 to 8 overs.

Shankar should be a part of the team which plays Australia at home in a fortnight and good performances against the Aussies could lead to his inclusion in the World Cup squad.

About the author

Meit is a cricket journalist who has been working at Sportskeeda for over eight years, writing listicles. A Bachelor of Commerce and Bachelor of Legislative Laws and Company Secretary degree holder, Meit engages in ethical reporting by verifying information twice from multiple websites before penning down any content for the benefit of his readers.

A passionate fan of Team India, Cricket has a special place in his heart owing to the way the sport has continued to evolve over the years. He is also thrilled by the competitiveness on display across all formats in the sport. His favorite cricketer is Sachin Tendulkar and reckons that his childhood idol's dominance over world-class bowlers in the 1990s speaks volumes about his skills and achievements.

Meit has had the privilege of interviewing Indian speedster Ishant Sharma and India Women's legend Mithali Raj so far in his professional career.

If he ever laid his hands on a time machine, Meit would love to witness the 2023 ICC World Cup final between India and Australia and believes that ODIs should never be completely replaced by T20Is owing to the format's popularity.

When not working, he likes to read and travel.

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Edited by Mridul Bhasin