CWC 2019: 3 star performers from last World Cup who could not make the cut this time

Cricket has turned into a tough competition, not only among different teams but also within a team. Places in an international team are always insecure; one needs to be extremely consistent with his performance to keep his place in the team.

There is a considerable difference between the sides that featured in CWC 2015 and those, that are going to feature in CWC 2019. In these 4 years, all teams have seen many players rising through the ranks and many losing their forms.

While some players announced retirement from international cricket, some lose their place due to moldering performance.

Let us have a look at three-star performers from the last World Cup who could not make it to the squad for World Cup 2019.

1. Wahab Riaz:

Wahab was all over Shane Watson.

The Pakistani pace sensation was among the top bowlers in the last World Cup. He was the highest wicket-taker for Pakistan. Then, Wahab Riaz displayed sheer pace with great accuracy. He was the talk of the town following his nasty spell to Shane Watson in the quarter-final. The Australian batsmen were completely on the mat against Wahab Riaz, and if fielders had supported, Pakistan would have won that match.

Wahab had picked up 16 wickets in 7 matches at 23 apiece, with an economy rate of 5.56 and strike rate of 24.8. But, after the World Cup, he could not continue his flow, and his form went from bad to worse. His last ODI for Pakistan was the league game against India in the ICC Champions Trophy 2017 where he conceded 87 runs in 8.4 overs before meeting to an injury. After that, he could not make a comeback to the national fold. Though he did well in the Pakistan Super League that was played ahead of squad selection for the World Cup, the selectors did not show trust in him.

2. Suresh Raina:

Suresh Raina played some important knocks in the last World Cup.

Suresh Raina, alongside MS Dhoni in the middle order, was the key aspect of the Indian batting line up in the previous World Cup. 70 odd runs against Pakistan and a century against Zimbabwe after a top order failure were the highlights of Suresh Raina's tournament.

As an aggregate, the left-hander scored 284 runs in six innings at 56.80. His strike rate of 110.07 was one of the crucial things for India's good run in that tournament. He made a contribution with the ball as well, bowling 15 overs in the tournament at an economy rate of 4.26.

Post-2015 World Cup, India lost two consecutive ODI series he featured in: first against Bangladesh in Bangladesh and second against South Africa at home. Though it was a collective failure, Suresh Raina became the scapegoat and found himself out from the squad for Australia tour.

Suresh Raina tried hard for a comeback and was successful in his attempts as he earned a place in the team for the ODI series against England in 2018. In two matches he batted there, Raina scored 47 runs with the highest score of 46.

After that Raina was not considered for the team and his domestic and IPL form has not helped his way either.

3. Umesh Yadav:

Umesh Yadav was the highest wicket-taker for India.

In ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, till the quarter-final stage, India had bowled out all their opponents, and Umesh Yadav was one of the enforcers for the task. The Vidarbha Express was the third highest wicket-taker in the tournament, picking up 18 wickets in 8 matches at 17.83 apiece, with an economy rate of 4.98 and a strike rate of 21.4. His best performance came at an important stage as he returned the figures 9-01-31-4 against Bangladesh in the quarter-final.

Following the World Cup 2015, Umesh Yadav kept himself in contention till the very last as he played his last ODI in 2019 only. The emergence of Mohammad Shami as a limited overs player and stability of the pair of Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar hindered his way to become third pace option in the World Cup squad for 2019. A higher economy rate (6.98) in his last five appearances in ODI cricket also caused his ouster from the World Cup squad.