Last Updated on 3 years by Charbel Coorey
3 unlucky players who weren’t picked in India T20 squad vs NZ | 3 unlucky players who missed out on selection in the India T20 squad
A new chapter of Indian cricket will begin with the home series against New Zealand after a disappointing World Cup campaign. Rohit Sharma will be leading the T20I team for the first time as a full time captain and Rahul Dravid will take over the role of head coach from Ravi Shastri.
India will kick off their home season with the three-match T20I series. For that, the BCCI has announced a 16-member squad. A few of the senior players have been rested which has allowed an opportunity for many talented uncapped players to make the squad.
Some proficient newcomers have discovered a spot within the group. Nevertheless, there are just a few profitable names who surprisingly missed out on selection. Here in this article will look at the three Indian players who were unfortunate to miss out on selection.
3 players who were unlucky to miss out on selection in the India T20 squad
Ravi Bishnoi
Since his U19 debut, Bishnoi had made a name for himself as the strike spinner who can turn the game with ball in hand. Although he’s very young, many have found it tough to play against him in the IPL. He picked up 12 wickets at an economy of 6.34 in IPL 2021, at a strike rate of 17.5.
The 21-year-old has been impressive for Rajasthan in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy as well, where he took a hat-trick against Andhra. For many, Bishnoi’s bowling style resembles that of Rashid Khan’s bowling, especially his googly. The leggie is a proven wicket-taker in the middle overs of the game and this could’ve been a perfect opportunity to test him at the international level against a top side like New Zealand.
Prithvi Shaw
Shaw undoubtedly has been one of the most explosive T20 openers going around. The 22-year-old Mumbai batter knows only one way to play the game and that’s going hard at the opposition bowlers from the very first over.
He played some sensational knocks in the 2021 edition of the Indian Premier League. In 15 matches, he scored 479 runs at an average of 31.93 and a blistering strike rate of 159.13.
His strike rate is enough to make a case for his selection in India’s T20 team. One reason behind his snub could be the presence of five possible opening options in the squad – Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Ishan Kishan, Ruturaj Gaikwad, and Venkatesh Iyer.
Arshdeep Singh
There was a time when the country had four top-class left-arm operators in Zaheer, Ashish Nehra, Irfan Pathan, and RP Singh. However, as of now, the larder presents a grim picture. For a long time, India has been in search of a left-arm pacer but the team has failed to find the apt player with the right qualities.
The way Arshdeep Singh is growing as a cricketer can be a vital cog to the Indian team before the T20 World Cup in Australia. The Punjab-born bowler made his mark in playing for the India in the 2018 U19 World Cup. Over the past two seasons, he had already made a reputation as an effective death bowler but now he is also making the new ball talk. His accuracy and ability to hit the right areas in the powerplay and the death overs was the talking point of IPL 2021.
Arshdeep bagged 18 wickets including a five-wicket haul at 19.0 with an economy rate of 8.27. These numbers suggest that he wouldn’t have been a bad option especially when India are going to play the series in home conditions. In absence of the senior pros, Arshdeep certainly would’ve added variety to India’s seam bowling stocks in the upcoming series.
Written by Vaibhav Tripathi. Follow Vaibhav on Twitter today.
