5 Senior Players Who Can Be Included In The Squad For The Australia Series

With Team India making it clear that it would not shy away from experimenting extensively in the coming months in order to get a settled unit before the next World Cup, it will not be surprising if the selectors bring in several new faces in the squad for the upcoming series against Australia.

The likes of Manish Pandey, KL Rahul, Kuldeep Yadav and others were tried out in Sri Lanka in different matches and in different roles and the upcoming series against Australia will give the Men in Blue another chance to try out some other players. However, while the team primarily tested youngsters in Sri Lanka, some senior players can get a chance in the upcoming series.

Experienced players are always important for a tournament like the World Cup so here we are looking at 4 players who can find a place in the squad for the Australia series:

5. Ishant Sharma:

The senior-most pacer in the team right now, Ishant has fallen down the pecking order especially in the 50-over format. However, given his vast experience, the team can surely test him out. Moreover, his experience in England can also be handy for Virat Kohli & Co. when they travel to England in 2019 for the showpiece event. In addition to being the part of the Test team for the last two tours of England, he was also in the team when Mahendra Singh Dhoni led the Men in Blue to Champions Trophy title in 2013 in England.

4. Amit Mishra:

There are very cricketers who are as unlucky as Amit Mishra. One of the best spinners in the country for the last one decade or so, Mishra never managed to cement his place in the team due to the presence of spinners like Harbhajan Singh, Ravichandran Ashwin and others. However, he has made sure to make full use of the limited opportunities that have come his way but unfortunately he has not been rewarded for them.

He was the highest wicket-taker in the five-match ODI series against New Zealand last year but has not featured prominently for the team since then. In fact, he did not even make it to the squad for the Champions Trophy, West Indies tour and the recently-concluded series against Sri Lanka. However, given his experience and ability, he can be a surprise inclusion in the team.

3. Dinesh Karthik:

Another top-performer of the domestic circuit, Karthik was a surprise omission from the squad for the Sri Lanka series. The wicketkeeper-batsman returned to the team during the Champions Trophy after a very fruitful outing in the last season of the domestic season as well as the Indian Premier League. The 31-year-old led Tamil Nadu to their fifth Vijay Hazare title by scoring 112 in the final against Bengal. He finished the 50-overs tournament as the top run-getter averaging 86.71 while scoring 607 runs in nine matches.

In the Ranji Trophy, he scored 704 runs in 10 matches at an average of 54.15. He continued his red-hot form in the Duleep Trophy as well where he scored 211 runs in the three games he played for India Blue. He also led Tamil Nadu to Deodhar Trophy title by scoring 247 runs in three matches. His form in the IPL was equally impressive where he amassed 361 runs in 14 outings at an average of a shade over 36.

He did not get a single game during the Champions Trophy but got two ODIs during the West Indies. However, he managed to make a mark with an unbeaten half-century in one of the two games before scoring 48 in the one-off T20. India’s middle-order is looking fragile at the moment and Karthik might be able to give it the much-needed solidarity.

2. Yuvraj Singh

Given his track record in big games especially the ICC events, the team can definitely try out Yuvraj one more time. There is absolutely no denying the fact that the World Cup-winning star is looking like a pale shadow of his former self but his 150-run knock against England earlier this year and the quick-fire fifty in the Champions Trophy-opener showed that he still has a lot to offer for the team. Moreover, with India struggling to get a good player for the number 4 spot, Yuvraj can solve the problem.

1. Suresh Raina

An indispensable part of India’s limited-overs team not very long ago, Raina has not played an ODI since October 2015. However, his performance in the T20I series against England earlier this year and in Indian Premier League showed that he still has it in him to deliver at the highest stage of the game. He finished the three-match series against England as its third highest run-getter with 104 runs before scoring 442 runs in 14 IPL matches. With the number 4 spot up for grabs, India can also consider the Uttar Pradesh in the upcoming series.