ICC World Cup 2019: 3 players unlikely to grab the No. 4 spot for India

The most prestigious tournament in cricket - World Cup 2019 - is approaching, and all the teams are making last-minute preparations. The squads have mostly been finalized in the selectors' minds, and the players are anxious to know if they have made it to the plane to England or not.

While IPL 2019 has taken over the World Cup fever for a bit, Indian fans were reminded of the tournament again when the chief selector MSK Prasad announced that he will be declaring India's squad on 15th April 2019.

India have tried out a lot of players in recent times and while their core squad had been decided quite a while ago, there remains a lot of anticipation as to who would occupy the doubtful seats, especially that of the number 4 spot in the team (assuming MS Dhoni bats at five).

This spot is one that India has been unable to fill since Yuvraj Singh's departure, and there still remains a lot of uncertainty around it. The strongest contender for the spot seems to be Vijay Shankar.

However, let us have a look at 3 players who have likely missed their chance and are not expected to grab the No. 4 seat:

#3 Rishabh Pant

Rishabh Pant stamped his authority on international cricket with some stunning centuries in England and Australia in the Test format. He was given some chances in ODIs and T20Is too so that he could go to the World Cup as India's No. 4, but it would be fair to say that he has not utilized his chances well.

Pant has played only 4 ODI innings and has an average of just about 20 runs. He has failed to stay at the crease long enough or take the game deep enough, and his shot selection is quite questionable. Pant has made it a habit of giving away his wicket; it doesn't seem like he can be relied upon if the team has a batting collapse.

Also, Dinesh Karthik is a proven and better finisher than Pant. Since the Nidahas Trophy final, Karthik has been in tremendous form and is likely to go to England as the backup wicketkeeper.

With age on his side, Pant should look to make amends and with better performances, he could play the T20 World Cup in 2020.

#2 Ajinkya Rahane

Ajinkya Rahane has not made full use of his chances

Ajinkya Rahane was once one of the most important members of the squad. Even after being dropped due to poor form he got another opportunity to make a comeback, and played some ODI cricket in South Africa and India. However, he failed to impress the selectors and is unlikely to make it to the WC squad.

Rahane played his last ODI in 2018 for India and he hasn't represented the country in the format since then. He has not had a stellar IPL either, which doesn't help his cause.

Rahane is pretty consistent but his biggest problem in this format is that he is unable to go big. With India's top 3 performing more often than not, the team needs someone who can come out in the last 8-10 overs and tonk the ball all around the ground. This is something Rahane has failed to do.

His ODI strike rate is about 78, which is below-par. In the current generation where scores of 350+ are being chased down with ease, India needs someone who is consistent but can also go for the big shots, and Rahane doesn't fit the latter requirement.

#1 Ambati Rayudu

Ambati Rayudu has been in extremely poor form

21, 21, 0, 1, 5, 28, 2, 18, 13, 15.

These are Ambati Rayudu's last 10 scores. Six of these are from the IPL, three from the home series against Australia, and one from a domestic game.

The figures show how horrible Rayudu's form has been, and for this reason alone he is unlikely to make it to the WC squad as the number 4 batsman.

Just when India thought that their Number 4 conundrum had been solved with Rayudu's big scores last year, he started performing poorly. His weaknesses have been exposed; he struggles a lot against extreme pace, which has been quite visible in all his recent performances. He is comfortable with medium pace but anything that goes above 130 makes him worry.

In the World Cup, where the likes of Mitchell Starc and Kagiso Rabada will be bowling to him, Rayudu will have a lot of difficulties and will not be able to stabilize India's batting.

Also, the one advantage Rayudu had over the other contenders for the spot was his part time bowling. However, he has been reported for a suspect action is now banned from bowling in international games, which makes him just another middle order batsman in the squad.

With Virat Kohli looking for consistency and someone who can bowl a few overs of pace, Vijay Shankar seems to be the best choice for No. 4. Sure he lacks experience, but under the guidance of Dhoni, Kohli and Rohit Sharma, he could become a handy member for the team.