India witnessed another loss in the final game of an ICC tournament. Team India displayed a weak performance in front of Australia in the World Test Championship (WTC) and it was a comfortable win for the Aussies.
It has been a decade, and Team India has not won a single ICC trophy and when it comes to the Test format, team India has always struggled on the foreign pitches. The cricket betting sites have decent odds with them for a number of cricket tournaments.
BCCI and the selection committee have been playing musical chairs with the selection of players and even after trying different permutations and combinations, they are unable to find the winning combination.
Constant losses in the final game also affect the team morale and the confidence of the players. As the new season begins, team India will some major changes in the red-ball format.
Here is a list of 5 players who are expected to be included in the team very soon.
1) Hardik Pandya
It has been 5 years since Hardik Pandya played his last Test. He was seen in the red-ball format against England in August 2018. After that, BCCI and the selection committee used Hardik in the limited-over format only. In recent times, Hardik has stunned everyone with his performance in the white-ball format and the way he has changed himself, it is now time for him to come back to the red-ball format.
Pandya has been part of 11 Tests and he has scored runs at an average of 31.3 and a strike rate of 73.9. He has also picked up 17 wickets in 19 innings at an economy of 3.38. BCCI should consider him for the Test format and build him as a complete player.
2) Bhuvneshwar Kumar
Bhuvneshwar Kumar is the master of swing and he has succeeded himself in the white-ball format. For a long time, team India has relied on his pace and accuracy in T20 cricket. However, Bhuvi has also displayed his swing talent in Test cricket and he last played the 5-day cricket in 2018.
Overall, Bhuvi has been part of 21 Tests and he has picked up 63 wickets at an economy of 2.94. The Indian Sultan of Swing has been ignored by BCCI in the T20 cricket as well after the T20 World Cup. However, the board can use him as the third pacer in the red-ball format from now on.
3) Sarfaraz Khan
Sarfaraz Khan first gained attention during the 2014 Under-19 Cricket World Cup, where he was one of the leading run-scorers for the Indian team. He scored 355 runs in six matches at an average of 71, including a century and two half-centuries.
However, in recent times, he has been in the news for his consistent performances in domestic cricket. With a batting average of 77.43 in 34 first-class matches, Sarfaraz is the next-best candidate for the Indian test team. The only problem with the player is his attitude issue as in the past there have been incidents regarding his attitude towards the selectors.
4) Ruturaj Gaikwad
The Chennai Super Kings opener has shown his class in IPL and has performed exceptionally well for team India in the past. However, with team India jersey he has just played one ODI and 9 T20 internationals. It is now time for the selectors to try him out for the red-ball format.
It is visible that the experienced batters are not working out in the opening lineup and Team India needs some fresh legs. Ruturaj has a batting average of 40.43 in 24 first-class matches and if given a chance, he can do wonders for Team India.
5) Yashasvi Jaiswal
Yashasvi Jaiswal came into the spotlight with his performance in IPL 2023 but he was already doing a good job in domestic cricket while playing for Mumbai.
In 15 first-class games, Jaiswal has scored 1845 runs at an average of 80.21. His total score included 9 centuries and 2 half-centuries. Jaiswal is a reliable opener who must be tried during the upcoming West Indies tour.
