Year in Review: Flop ODI XI of year 2013

4) Kevin Pietersen

Kevin Pietersen

(Matches- 9, Runs- 256, Average- 28.44, HS- 76, 100s-0, 50s-2)

For a man who is perennially on the brink of scoring the greatest Test innings ever (as proclaimed by the British media), his ODI performances cropped a shocker in 2013. He got decent starts in most of the games but the moment he realised that he was wearing the garish red version of England’s jersey and not the white one, he threw his wicket, almost in self-pity. For in England, reputation is always judged by one’s Test records which in turn has made sure that no England player has ever been proclaimed as a great in the ODI format, not since Dean Headley and Sajid Mahmood plied their trade for them.

5) Yuvraj Singh

Yuvraj Singh

(Matches-18, Runs- 276, Batting Average- 19.71, HS- 61, 100s-0, 50s-2, Wickets- 2, Bowling Average- 72.50, BBI- 2/34)

For all his efforts to make another comeback to the Indian national team, his batting average this season was poorer to, a) Robin Peterson, b) Kyle Mills and c) Shahid Afridi. His highest score in the year was 61 against England at bowlers-hate-this-highway, co-incidentally also the last time Gambhir scored a half-century for India. He made 4 ducks in the same calendar year , a record which was not surpassed even by the likes of Mohammad Irfan, Lonwabo Tsotsobe, Ishant Sharma and Junaid Khan. It was painful to see him struggle, especially after all his heroics to make a comeback but just one look at the gap between his bat and pad was enough for my brain to shut my heart up. His well-spent time at France made him look like an Yuvraj of 2008 but batting-wise turned him into a Mongia (Dinesh, that is) of 2004.