Asia Cup 2022: 3 Players Who Didn't Deserve To Be In The Indian Team, Could Cost The Team The T20 World Cup Too

India’s hopes of qualifying for the final of the Asia Cup 2022 are all but over after the defeat against Sri Lanka on Tuesday.  After losing to Pakistan, the Men in Blue needed to win the contest to remain in contention. However, Sri Lanka came up with a solid performance to beat India by 6 wickets.

The defeat has not only put India on the verge of elimination from the Asia Cup but has also given the team management a lot to worry about ahead of this year’s T20 World Cup. With the marquee event just over a month away, India’s performances against Pakistan and Sri Lanka have exposed a number of loopholes in the team.

So as the Indian team management try to cover those loopholes, we are taking a look at 3 players who did not deserve a place in the team for the Asia Cup and could also cost the team the T20 World Cup if they are selected.

Asia Cup 2022: 3 Players Who Didn’t Deserve To Be In The Indian Team, Could Cost The Team The T20 World Cup Too

Deepak Hooda:

It would be a bit harsh to say that Deepak Hooda did not deserve a place in the squad. However, the way the team management has used him in the tournament, one can say that the team would have been better off without him. Hooda made an impact in Ireland and England as a top-order batsman.

And it was very much expected that he would not be getting any chance to bat in the top-order once the likes of Virat Kohli and KL Rahul returned. The team management still selected him in the playing eleven and used him as a lower-order batsman against Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

Hooda failed to deliver in both the games while batting at number seven, registering scores of 16 and 3. Surprisingly, Rohit Sharma did not use him as a bowler either. The way Hooda has been used by the team management, one can say that Dinesh Karthik would have been a better option.

KL Rahul:

KL Rahul has been one of the biggest disappointments of the tournament for Team India. One of the senior players of the team, the right-handed batsman recently returned to action after a long injury layoff and has been struggling for runs since then. Despite his lack of match practice, he was included in the team and the move has failed to pay off.

In his comeback series against Zimbabwe, Rahul scored 1 and 30. In the ongoing Asia Cup, he started his campaign with a duck against Pakistan. In the following game against Hong Kong, he scored 36 runs off 39 balls followed by a 28-run knock against Pakistan. And in the crucial clash against Sri Lanka, he was out for just 6.

In recent times, Rahul has also faced criticism for his strike rate in T20s. With the T20 World Cup not very far, the team management needs to make some tough calls. There are several top-order batsmen who have impressed in recent times and have the potential to replace Rahul for the marquee event.

Rishabh Pant:

Another player who has completely failed to justify his place in the team is Rishabh Pant. The wicketkeeper-batsman’s place in the T20 team has been a topic of discussion for quite some time now and Pant has not done any favours to him with his performance in the ongoing tournament.

After being left out of the playing eleven for the first game of the tournament, Pant was included in the team for the next three games. Against Hong Kong, he did not get the chance to bat before he came up with a couple of poor knocks against Pakistan and Sri Lanka. In both the games, he had the platform to give India a strong finish but he failed on both occasions.

Against Pakistan, he scored 14 off 12 balls while against Sri Lanka, he scored 17 off 13 balls. After his failure with the bat, he performed poorly behind the stumps too. In the 15th over against Sri Lanka, he missed an easy stumping chance when Dasun Shanaka was yet to open his account. The Sri Lanka skipper went on to play a match-winning cameo.

Later in the final over when 2 runs were needed off two balls, he failed to hit the stumps from behind and it eventually resulted in 2 byes. Pant has not only struggled as a batsman in T20Is but has also struggled with the wicketkeeping gloves. And it would not be very surprised if he fails to find a spot in the team for the T20 World Cup.