ENG vs IND 2018: Five Players who can Replace Ambati Rayudu in the ODI Squad

India Cricket team received yet another blow, as Ambati Rayudu failed to clear the yo-yo test ahead of the tour to Ireland and England, which is made mandatory to be a part of the squad.

Meanwhile, the cricketers who are part of the limited-overs squad met at NCA on Friday for a fitness test. While the likes of Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni cleared the test, Rayudu failed to pass.

However, it will also be a blow to Rayudu, who was in an outstanding touch on the personal front. He had a terrific time with the bat for the Chennai Super Kings in the recently concluded IPl.

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Rayudu along with Shane Watson formed a devastating opening pair to guide the team to the trophy. The batsman from Hyderabad registered 602 runs from 16 games including an unbeaten 100.

The men in blues, meanwhile, will play two T20Is against Ireland before flying to the UK. There they will play three T20Is against England followed by three ODIs. A five-match Test series will follow the white-ball series.

Although Rayudu was a part of the ODI squad, he missed on the T20I and Test squad.

On that note, let us take a look at five possible replacements of Rayudu:

Suresh Raina

One of the senior men, Raina is the frontrunner to replace Rayudu in the ODI squad against England. He has experience of playing in England and has been in decent touch off late.

Raina played some crucial knocks in the IPL for Chennai Super Kings. However, he had last played an ODI in 2015 against South Africa in Mumbai. Most recently, he made his return to the T20I squad during the South Africa series.

Raina will look to cash in if an opportunity comes his way.

Rishabh Pant

The wicket-keeper batsman from Delhi has been in touch of late. He finished as the second highest run-scorer in the IPL with 684 runs. Although his team struggled to qualify, Pant made big in this tournament.

He has made his T20I debut but failed to make any mark. This will be a huge opportunity for him who would will like to utilize the opportunity to full.

Pant is one of the possible contenders to replace Dhoni, and he will look to grab the opportunity with both hands.

Mayank Agarwal

The batsman from Karnataka has had a great tournament in the domestic circuit. However, he failed to replicate his show in the IPL.

He broke all the records in the domestic circuits scoring tons of runs in the Ranji Trophy and Vijay Hazare Trophy.

Meanwhile, Mayank has been on the sidelines for quite some time now and badly will want an opportunity. Agarwal is capable of pacing the innings according to his will and can be a future prospect.

Kedar Jadhav

Kedar Jadhav is also one of the possible contenders to replace Ambati Rayudu in the ODI squad to England. The short-height all-rounder had all the experience behind his back and played in this conditions.

However, he sustained a hamstring injury in the first game of the IPL while playing for Chennai. Jadhav can smack the ball hard in the lower-middle-order and is handy with his gentle off-spin.

He can be a crucial addition to the Virat Kohli-led Indian team in England.

Nitish Rana

The young batsman had a terrific time in the IPL playing for Kolkata Knight Riders. He took responsibility in the middle overs guiding the team to big scores.

Moreover, he can also bowl gentle medium pace which can come in handy in England pitches.

The southpaw scored 304 runs from 15 games at a strike-rate of touch over 131. It will be a welcome opportunity for him and will be desperate to cash in.

Also read: India vs Afghanistan, One-Off Test – Statistical Highlights