5 Indian fast bowlers whose Test careers ended before the age of 28

India has never been a great producer of fast bowlers. For a long time after Kapil Dev's retirement, there was not a single fast bowler who looked like coming anywhere near the 431-wicket benchmark set by 'The Haryana Hurricane'.

Then, in the early and mid-noughties, a crop of talented fast bowlers emerged who seemed to have in them what it takes to succeed at the highest level. Unfortunately for Indian cricket, majority of these totally faded away after their initial success leaving Indian bowling attack in shambles.

Some of them even did not play Test cricket for India after 28, an age which is considered to be the start of any cricketer's prime years. Now with a new bunch of fast bowlers emerging, these guys are already out of the race.

Let us take a look at 5 fast bowlers whose test careers ended before actually taking off.

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#5 Ashish Nehra

Ashish Nehra's career was plagued by injuries

A career marred by numerous injuries did not flourish at Test level as much as it did in ODIs and T20s. Throughout the course of his career, Ashish Nehra underwent 12 surgeries for various injuries that he faced. Also, lack of form meant he was out of the side for a long time before redeeming himself in 2009.

Nehra made his debut in February 1999 against Sri Lanka and played only 16 Tests more after that. In one of the interviews, Nehra stated that Dhoni and Gary Kirsten had offered him a Test comeback in 2009 but his body was not ready to play the longest format back then. His unimpressive figures read 44 wickets from 17 Tests at an average of 42.

He made his last Test appearance just a few days before his 25th birthday.

#4 Munaf Patel

Munaf could not capitalize on the early success at international level

The Ikhar-born pacer made headlines in his early years in international cricket because of his brute pace and ability to rattle batsmen. He made his Test debut in March 2006 against England, however, his career went nowhere after the initial success.

Injuries forced him to cut down on his pace. Being someone who believed in hit-the-deck theory, his bowling lost venom after he was down on pace. Sometimes, it was the discipline that did not go well with Munaf. Just when he was finding his feet in international cricket again in 2011, he suffered a massive injury which kept him out for some more time.

By then, selectors had already started looking at new faces and Munaf was discarded. His last Test came in the West Indies in 2011 few days before his 28th birthday. In all, he played just 13 Tests and picked 35 wickets.

#3 Praveen Kumar

Praveen Kumar had a successful tour to England in 2011, but did not play after that

A workhorse who was moderate on pace but could get the ball to talk a lot, Praveen Kumar made his debut in the Caribbean in 2011. He played a key role in India's tour to England later that month, shouldering a lot of responsibility but was left out of the side for the next Test series.

Kumar's first-class performances were decent, but was continued to be overlooked. He remained in the ODI setup for some time but was never really in the hunt for a Test spot. Ultimately, he played only 6 Tests for India, picking 27 wickets at 25 apiece.

His last match came at the age of 24. Now with Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah and others emerging, the chances of his comeback look bleak.

#2 RP Singh

The WT20 hero RP Singh could not replicate the same success in Test cricket

The star of India's WT20 2007 campaign did not enjoy as much success in Test cricket as he did in South Africa in the inaugural edition of the ICC WT20. RP Singh looked to be a pace sensation when he came to the international scene, but surprisingly showed lack of wicket-taking abilities in Test cricket.

Singh made his test debut in Faisalabad in 2006 and was out of the Test side after a couple of years. He made a brief comeback in 2011 but his performances were lackluster and he was not picked after that. In 14 Tests, he has only 40 wickets to show at a very high bowling average of 42. RP last donned the whites in 2011 at the age of 24.

#1 Irfan Pathan

Irfan Pathan's wasted potential was Indian cricket's biggest loss

Irfan Pathan was the brightest prospect in Indian cricket when he made his international debut back in 2003. His banana swing used to baffle the best in the business. The left hander could also wield his willow and played as pinch-hitter during Rahul Dravid's era as a captain.

However, all the potential was wasted and Irfan's career came crashing down after a few promising years. The left-hander who was looked upon taking Indian bowling to the next level ended up playing only 29 Tests, picking 100 wickets.

His last Test appearance came against South Africa in April 2008 when his age was just 23. Irfan not flourishing in red-ball game was perhaps Indian cricket's biggest loss.