2015 Player Ratings for India in ODIs

For lack of a more sophisticated word, India’s ODI performances this year can be put down as inconsistent. In fact, had it not been for their heroics at the all-important multination tournament earlier in the year, it would have been befitting to refer to them as nothing more than deplorable.After a disappointing tri-series Down Under, they flattered to deceive while bowling out oppositions seven times straight at the World Cup only to surrender meekly against the Australians in the semifinals. Moving on, they lost the series against Bangladesh in June and against the Proteas at home in October with an inconsequential whitewash of Zimbabwe sandwiched in between.Not surprisingly, none of the Indians could make it to the ODI XI of the year with such dismal performances. Also, the fact that as many as 24 cricketers have featured in matches for India implies none has played all the ODIs this year, thereby curtailing their chances of making up for lost opportunities.As 2015 draws to a close, the author attempts to rate the Indian players on the basis of their performances and their impact on the team’s fortunes. With the objective of playing fair, only cricketers who have played in more than 10 ODIs have been considered here.

#1 Ajinkya Rahane 6/10

Matches – 21, Runs – 722, Average – 40.11, Hundreds – 0

Fresh from a fighting 73 against England at Perth, Ajinkya Rahane was expected to make it big at the ICC World Cup. He did try to revive his fortunes with a 60-ball 79 against South Africa after falling for a golden duck in the first match, but the rest of the campaign remained non-descript at best.

It was not until South Africa’s tour in the later half of the year that the Mumbaikar decided to return to runs. He scored consecutive half-centuries in the first two matches before topping it with a magnificent 87 off 58 deliveries in a losing cause in the last match of the series. This 87 remains his highest score in ODIs since his career-best effort of 111 against Sri Lanka last year.

#2 Shikhar Dhawan 6.5/10

Matches – 20, Runs – 745, Average – 37.25, Hundreds – 2

Shikhar Dhawan was one of the reasons why India thrived with such dominance in the initials stages of the ICC World Cup. Not only did he notch up two centuries including career-best 137 against the Proteas but also contributed handsomely against Pakistan and Australia.

He carried his form over to Bangladesh against whom he averaged in excess of 50 in 3 matches with a highest of 75. The decline, however, began with the home series against South Africa where he failed to get decent starts in the first four matches and when he did, he squandered it with a rash stroke across the line in the final ODI at Mumbai.

#3 MS Dhoni 5.5/10

Matches – 20, Runs – 640, Average – 45.71, Hundreds – 0

During what has been a pretty disheartening experience, the Indian skipper MS Dhoni has accumulated only four 50+ scores in the entire year – two of them coming against minnows Zimbabwe and Bangladesh. In fact, his scores in the first five matches of the year read 19, 34, 17, 18 and 18.

A big unbeaten 92 at the Holkar Cricket Stadium in a match-winning effort that earned him the Player of the Match award against South Africa remains the sole anomaly in the list of low aggregates.

With Virat Kohli flourishing as the skipper in the longest format of the game, Dhoni really needs to gather his thoughts and put in convincing performances if he wants to play for a couple of years more.

#4 Virat Kohli 5/10

Matches – 20, Runs – 623, Average – 36.64, Hundreds – 2

That his average is reeling at 36.64 even after two centuries is indicative of the fact that Virat Kohli has been one of the greatest disappointments of the year in limited overs international cricket. In fact, it took him as many as five innings to reach the 10-run mark at the beginning of the year.

He was repeatedly found wanting in tough conditions Down Under and despite a few starts, his World Cup campaign reeked of confidence deficiency. His highest score in the following series in Bangladesh ended up being 25. A 99-ball 77 succeeded by a 140-ball 138 in consecutive matches against South Africa ensured he would not be dropped against Australia in 2016.

#5 Suresh Raina 4/10

Matches – 20, Runs – 517, Average – 32.31, Hundreds – 1

The problem with Suresh Raina is that when he is good, he is not good enough and when he is bad, the team might rather be playing with 10 men instead. He began the new year with a creditable half-century against Australia on January 18 but ended up scoring only a couple of runs in as many matches in that series.

High scores against Pakistan, Zimbabwe and Bangladesh during the World Cup meant his failures against better teams would be overlooked. A below-average tour to Bangladesh later, the southpaw ended up aggregating 3 runs from the first three matches against the Proteas in October.

He did manage to score an unconvincing 53 in the fourth ODI but was back to his poor form in the final match.

#6 Rohit Sharma 7.5/10

Matches – 17, Runs – 815, Average – 50.93, Hundreds – 3

Surprise, surprise! The perennial disappointment Rohit Sharma is the only Indian among the six ODI openers with an average of over 50, the others beings David Warner, Martin Guptill, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Soumya Sarkar and Hashim Amla.

With 4 fifties and 3 centuries, the Mumbaikar has definitely been the player of the year for India in ODIs. After a strong World Cup campaign, he hammered the South African bowlers on a flat Kanpur track for 150 runs in the first ODI. Exactly a week later, he scored 65 off 74 at Rajkot in a losing cause once again.

#7 Mohit Sharma 6/10

Matches – 15, Wickets – 23, Average – 28.30

The only thing that probably justifies MS Dhoni’s persistence with Mohit Sharma is that he has taken at least a wicket in all the matches he has played this year. The only time he picked up 3 wickets in an ODI was against Zimbabwe during a league match in the World Cup.

With his pedestrian pace and lack of incisiveness, Mohit hasn’t been too effective against top teams like South Africa and Australia. Although his economy of 5.62 tells the story of a decent bowler, his year in international cricket has been hardly fruitful quality-wise.

#8 Umesh Yadav 6.5/10

Matches – 14, Wickets – 25, Average – 25.28

As a genuine fast bowler, Umesh Yadav’s tendency of getting milked for runs is quite understandable. But it is his wicket-taking abilities that grant him a place in the playing XI every time India take the field. After 25 wickets from 14 matches this year, one can safely assume that Yadav is taking care of that.

The 28-year old right-arm pacer announced his appearance in the World Cup with a 2/50 against Pakistan and had to wait till the seventh match against Bangladesh for a 4-wicket-haul. He repeated the effort versus Australia in the semis only to find himself in the losing side eventually.

A couple of nondescript performances against South Africa resulted in him being dropped for the rest of the series.

#9 Ravchandran Ashwin 7/10

Matches – 13, Wickets – 21, Average – 24.57

For someone as successful as Ravichandran Ashwin, only 13 ODIs in a year is a shame. But then, he has already scalped 21 victims at an average of 24.57 in his brief stint. Further, with an economy of 4.27, he has been a definite threat to the opposition throughout.

Ashwin has been highly successful not only in ODIs but also in the longest format of the game with 62 wickets in as few as 9 Tests. Though his ODI figures may not seem equally impressive, the fact that he has been consistently penetrating on all kinds of tracks makes him a potent threat for the batsmen.

#10 Bhuvneshwar Kumar 4.5 /10

Matches – 13, Wickets – 16, Average – 36.06

The troubling fact for Bhuvneshwar Kumar has been that he has gone wicketless on five occasions for India in 2015. Once a fast-bowling prodigy who could swing the ball appreciably, Kumar’s rapid metamorphosis from a wicket-taking option to a run-containing bowler to ultimately someone who doesn’t know what he is doing has been baffling to say the least.

Yes, he did display glimpses of his previous self during the Zimbabwe tour, especially in the second match where he returned with figures of 4/33, but the right-hander from Meerut has never been the same since.

#11 Axar Patel 4/10

Matches – 13, Wickets – 14, Average – 37.35

The reason behind Axar Patel’s inclusion in the team was his all-round skills – something he has hardly justified in the 22 matches that he has played till now. This year, for instance, has been extremely dismal with a batting average of 7.28 – worse than even Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohit Sharma – and a bowling average of 37.35.

A best of 3/39 against South Africa in the second ODI of the series remains the only time he managed 3 or more wickets in a match this year. As India’s quest for the ultimate all-rounder continues, one only hopes Patel lives up to his billing.

#12 Ravindra Jadeja 2.5/10

Matches – 12, Wickets – 10, Average – 49.50

10 wickets from 11 innings at almost 50 runs per victim with a best of 2/23 versus UAE is hardly the kind of figures one would expect from a seasoned all-rounder. Not that Ravindra Jadeja has been miserly either – his economy of 5.40 is far too expensive for a left-arm spinner.

He averages just above 16 with the bat and the only time he scored in excess of 25 was against Bangladesh in the first match of the bilateral series. It is only surprising that despite moderate success in Tests in 2015, Jadeja could not bring his magic to limited overs cricket.

#13 Mohammed Shami 7.5/10

Matches – 11, Wickets – 19, Average – 20.63

The year had begun on an ordinary note for Mohammed Shami with half-decent performances against Australia and England before the World Cup. He entered the big event with enough confidence and put in some stellar performances that saw him emerge with 17 wickets in only 7 games before succumbing to an injury that ruled him out for the rest of the year.

Shami’s career-best effort came in India’s first World Cup match where he scalped 4 for 35 against Pakistan. From the third match onward, he picked up 3 wickets in each match for 3 consecutive ODIs before completing the group stage with a 2/37 against Bangladesh.

Inspite of getting milked for 68 runs in the semis, Shami’s economy climbed to no more than 4.77 for the year.