With the 2019 Cricket World Cup less than a year away, the focus is on ODIs. The selectors have already started to give chances to new faces and Virat Kohli has made it crystal clear that he is going to experiment with the side and see what each player has to offer.
A barrage of players have come up with good performances in the domestic circuit as well as IPL. With so much talent around, selectors have got choices in abundance and they are most likely to give opportunities to some of these players to prove their worth on the international level.
Many of these players were selected in the India A side that won the Tri-series in England by defeating a strong England Lions side in the finals. India A’s triumph is testimony of India’s strong bench strengt,h and some of these players might also get selected in the national side. We will look at 5 such players who can make their ODI debut in the build-up to the World Cup.
#5 Prithvi Shaw
Prithvi Shaw has improved with every game that he has played. The immensely talented opening batsman has already played a couple of domestic seasons for Mumbai. After leading the India Under 19 side to the World Cup title, Shaw impressed everyone with his temperament and technique in the IPL. Shaw was subsequently selected in the India A squad for the England tour. He played some stunning innings at the top of the order for India A and is touted as the next big thing in Indian cricket.
#4 Mayank Agarwal
Mayank Agarwal has been piling on the runs season after season in the domestic circuit. The Karnataka batsman ended the Indian domestic season with 2,141 runs, which is a record for aggregate runs for a batsman in all formats. He had a fantastic Vijay Hazare trophy, scoring a record 723 runs in the domestic ODI tournament. Agarwal also scored heavily playing for India A in the Tri-series against England Lions and West Indies A. Even though India have ample options for the opening slot, Agarwal’s terrific form will be hard to avoid.
#3 Deepak Chahar
Deepak Chahar came into the limelight after a strong performance for the Chennai Super Kings in IPL 2018. Chahar was used excessively in the powerplays by MS Dhoni, and didn’t disappoint the skipper. He took wickets regularly in the powerplays providing crucial breakthroughs to the side. After putting up an impressive show for India A, Chahar was named as Jasprit Bumrah’s replacement in the T20 side against England. The Rajasthan pacer has got good control over the swing and can strengthen India’s already strong pace attack.
#2 Rishabh Pant
Perhaps the player whose performances will be most keenly observed by everyone in the country will be Rishabh Pant. Pant is one of the most promising talents going around the country. He has been fantastic in the domestic circuit and in the IPL. The Delhi batsman won the orange cap in IPL 2018 by scoring 684 runs in 14 matches. The dashing left-hand batsman has been in rich vein of form. In the final of the Tri-series in England, Pant played a matured knock of 64 not out and helped India A win the series. Even though Rishabh Pant hasn’t really done justice to his talent on the international level till now, the selectors will be tempted to try him out before the World Cup.
#1 Krunal Pandya
Krunal Pandya has been one of the most consistent performers in the IPL over the years. The selectors might want to give the senior Pandya a chance on the international level to prove his worth. He performed exceedingly well on India A’s tour of England and was rewarded with a place in India’s T20 squad, as a replacement to Washington Sundar, for the series against England. If Krunal can repeat his terrific IPL form in ODIs, he can provide flexibility to the Indian team which could be extremely crucial going into the World Cup next year.
0 votes
