10 Talented Indian Cricketers Who Failed At The International Level

India have witnessed a massive change about the way they play cricket at the turn of the millennium =. The players have concentrated more to develop every aspect of their game. BCCI has also worked to their best to create a pool of cricketers to make the bench strength strong in order to replace the national team players. As a result, a string of poor performances meant losing the spot from the Indian team.

History has witnessed many cricketers who have made marks immediately on their international journey and have represented their country for an extended period. However, there are a handful of cricketers who have impressed in the domestic cricket but has failed to live upto the potential in the international circuit.

Here is the list of 10 talented cricketers from India who failed to attain success at the international level:

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1. Aakash Chopra

Scoring 10000 runs is not an easy feat to achieve, and only a few have managed to scale that landmark. Aakash Chopra is one of them who has registered 10839 runs in 162 first-class games at an average of 45.35 including 29 centuries. He and Virender Sehwag made a top-class opening pair for Delhi which gave nightmares to the opponent bowlers.

Chopra had that technique and temperament perfectly suited to the occupation at the top of the order but failed to live upto the expectation at the highest level. The opener managed to play only 10 Test matches for India scoring 437 runs during 2003-04 but never made it to the Indian team again.

2. Vinod Kambli

Many still believe that Vinod Kambli had more talents than Sachin Tendulkar. Kambli’s career got off to a fairytale start with big centuries and doubles, but he soon evaporated from the scene due to inconsistency and lack of discipline.

He played only 17 Tests for India as he was on and off the team and scored 1084 runs at an average of 54.20, which is brilliant. In ODIs, he scored runs at an average of just 32.59. However, for a player of Kambli’s calibre whose first-Class average touches almost 60, much more was expected from this stylish left-handed batsman.

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3. Ajay Sharma

Ajay Sharma was a true powerhouse of Indian domestic cricket in the 1980s and 1990s. Sharma was a phenomenon for several reasons. Of course, it started with his penchant for scoring runs, but it was the manner in which he got them that left an indelible impression.

A nervous starter, Sharma failed to fulfil his potential at the highest level for India. The elegant looking batsman who had an average of over 60 in the domestic circuit could manage to score only 424 runs in the 31 ODIs he played. Sharma also played one Test in 1988 but couldn’t make a great impact. Many felt that his unusually fidgety in the first ten or 15 balls played a significant role in his downfall.

4. Dinesh Karthik

A prodigy in domestic cricket for Tamil Nadu, Dinesh Karthik has failed to live upto the expectations in the international circuit for India. He has been an inspiration for many current generation cricketers back in his state because of his ability to score consistent runs.

But Karthik has managed to secure only 94 ODI matches since making his debut in 2004. Although MS Dhoni played a big part in that being the first choice wicket-keeper batsman, but Karthik has also struggled to offer consistency as he has no centuries in the fifty-over cricket with only nine fifties. He also failed to cement his berth in T20Is and Test matches.

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5. Pravin Amre

Praveen Amre was one the rare breed of players who scored a hundred on debut in a Test match on foreign soil. He made 103 against South Africa at Durban in 1992-93 under difficult conditions against a top-class attack. But could only manage ten more Tests and 37 ODIs for himself.

However, Amre was a prolific scorer in domestic cricket. His 246 for Rest of India against Bengal is still the highest by any batsman in the Irani Trophy. The Mumbai-born also scored plenty of runs along with a series of big scores in the Duleep and Ranji Trophy, proving that he was the player best suited to the longer version of the game. But his international career for India was short-lived as he failed to put his best feet forward.

6. Sanjay Bangar

One of the gutsiest allrounders in Indian domestic cricket, Sanjay Bangar was the greatest servant of Railways Cricket team. Besides Vijay Hazare, Bangar is the only cricketer to have achieved a double of 6,000 runs and 200 wickets in the Ranji Trophy. Moreover, Bangar led the Railways team to three domestic titles and was one of the pillars behind the team’s transition from also-rans to a force to reckon with.

However, he has failed to replicate his efforts for India and showed only glimpses of it. He played only 12 Tests and 15 ODIs for his country claiming seven wickets apiece and scoring only 470 and 180 runs respectively. Much was expected out of him but Bangar failed to live upto the belief as India badly needed an all-rounder to strike the right balance in the team.

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7. Manoj Tiwary

Manoj Tiwary is one of the most unfortunate cricketers in the history of Indian cricket. A stalwart in domestic cricket for Bengal, Tiwary’s aggressive style of batting has impressed one and all. His ability to score consistently and lead his side from the front earned him an international call in 2006 against Bangladesh.

While he was destined to make his debut, Tiwary sustained a shoulder injury which ruled him out. When the chance finally arrived in 2008, he was jetlagged and in Brisbane, completely out of league against a searing Brett Lee. Tiwary had to wait three more years for his next opportunity when he was made to open the innings against Sri Lanka after the regular opener failed to score runs. In total, he played only 12 ODIs and three T20Is for India managing to score only one hundred against West Indies before going out of contention.

8. Ajay Ratra

Ajay Ratra showed glimpses of his skills with a knock of 115 not out in Antigua in 2002; he became the youngest wicketkeeper to score a Test century and the second Indian wicketkeeper to make one overseas. He was just 20 years, and it was only his third Test for India. But later the summer proved to be cruel as he lost his place in the national team to Parthiv Patel and Rahul Dravid.

Meanwhile, Ratra boasted a good record for Haryana in the domestic circuit. He had 260 first-class dismissals to his name along with runs at an average of over 30. However, he could only manage to play six Tests and 12 ODIs before MS Dhoni made the spot his own.

9. Rohan Gavaskar

Rohan Gavaskar had the big shoes to fill that of his father Sunil Gavaskar when he came to the Indian team after his consistent show for Bengal in the domestic cricket. However, he never managed to recreate the magic of his elegant batting in the international circuit.

Rohan played only 11 ODI games for India in 2004 scoring 154 runs at an average of 18.87 with only one fifty to his name. On the contrary, he averaged close to 45 for Bengal amassing 6938 runs from 117 matches including 18 centuries and 34 fifties.

10. Venugopal Rao

A prolific run-getting in domestic games, Venugopal Rao showed shades of Rahul Dravid and Robin Singh in his batting. Representing Andhra and Gujarat, Rao shot to fame with consecutive nig scores including daddy hundreds to pave his way in the national team.

However, the short-height talented batsman never managed to showcase his skills for India. Rao played only 16 ODIs in the blue jersey scoring 218 runs at an average of 24.22 including one half-century. The right-handed batsman lost his place in the playing XI just before the ICC World Cup 2007.

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