Situation Vacant : Which players can take advantage and grab the opportunity?

[Feed]

More... Situation Vacant India’s early exit from the World T20 has created quite a few openings giving the tours of Zimbabwe and England a fresh perspective Amit Gupta Posted On Thursday, May 20, 2010 On May 9, at around five in the evening, a mail arrived from the Indian cricket board. It announced the team for the tri-series in Zimbabwe (the third team being Sri Lanka) and the India A squad for a tri-series involving England Lions and West Indies A. The selectors had met in the cool confines of Kodaikanal and had decided to rest all key India players, a majority of whom were taking part in the T20 World Cup. Sachin Tendulkar too was spared the trouble of playing in a non-marquee series in Zimbabwe. By that time India had lost their first Super Eight match to Australia and it looked totally innocuous that our much tired players were given some time off. But a few hours later India lost to the West Indies and were virtually knocked out of the tournament. Over the ensuing period, developments in the Caribbean have given the twin-team selection a new perspective. Till now the 32 young men picked for the two tours have escaped attention and scrutiny due to the ongoing debate about the reasons for India’s debacle and Modi-gate. But as the date of their departure draws closer (the Suresh Raina-led Indian side leaves on May 25 while the Cheteshwar Pujara-led team leaves early next month), the selectors and the players involved will be looking at these tournaments with increased interest. R Ashwin R Sharma C Pujara Key Assignments Before the 50-50 over World Cup which will be co-hosted by India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in February- March 2011, India has some key assignments like the away series against Sri Lanka and South Africa. They are also hosting Australia and New Zealand. This hectic schedule and disciplinary problems with some cricketers has made sure that there are some positions in the Indian team that will keep getting vacant as the season progresses. This makes these two tours important. One spot where there is a sure opening, involves the place occupied by Yuvraj Singh. He is not only out of form but is woefully lacking on the fitness front. He is nowhere near the brilliant fielder he used to be and a decade in international cricket seems to be counting for nothing. The contenders for his place in the ODI side are Rohit Sharma and Manish Pandey (India A). Sharma who’s a part of the team to Zimbabwe, isn’t a regular part of the full strength playing XI and although he’s entered the bad books of the BCCI these days, the tour provides an excellent opportunity for him to redeem himself. By making runs on this tour he will like to make it difficult for the selectors to drop him for the Asia Cup in June. Pandey, who shot into fame with good performances in the semis and final of IPL-09 and a superb domestic season, will be up against the elements in England. He will have to deal with the swing and seam so common at this point of the year in England. And if he can put some runs on the board under these conditions, he will do his chances of getting a national call no harm. Another batsman under the lens is Pujara. Season after season this Saurashtra batsman has piled on the runs in domestic tournaments. He has been tipped for a place in the Test side sooner or later. He will do himself a world of good by conquering the English conditions. A look at the bowling unit of both the teams, though reveals the selectors’ frustration. With RP Singh, Munaf Patel, Ishant Sharma, S Sreesanth and Irfan Pathan going off the boil, they have been forced to look at the likes of Ashoke Dinda, Pankaj Singh, Umesh Yadav, Vinay Kumar (all part of the Indian team) and Dhaval Kulkarni, Jaskaran Sigh and Abhinav Mithun. It’s anyone’s guess if any of them will be part of the national team set-up in the longer run. Selectors might have used the twin tours to give someone like Patel, Pathan and Sharma another chance. R Ashwin (India), the off-spinner will evoke interest with Harbhajan Singh showing increased tendency of not picking up wickets. The tours will also help Yousuf Pathan and Ravinder Jadeja rebuild their self-confidence and that of the selectors away from the media glare that has haunted them in West Indies.

[vvvslaxman]

When are we going to realize Yousuf Pathan is not much of a proper cricketer.

[Karan114]

When are we going to realize Yousuf Pathan is not much of a proper cricketer.

Yeah, we make fun of Afretard (and rightly so) but then our selectors keep selecting this clown. His brother is a far superior player at the highest level even when out of sorts.

[Chandan]

When are we going to realize Yousuf Pathan is not much of a proper cricketer.

Very soon, I'll say. I'm interested in seeing how Pujara, Manish Pandey and the young crop of seamers go in England. I'd have loved it had they played a series with England Lions because that team is quite a strong one and a good performance there would have meant triumph over tough opposition in alien conditions! But something is better than nothing! If Rohit Sharma doesn't realise now that he is ruining himself by following Yuvraj in every sense, then he is finished as well. We better move on from him. Who will be our number 6 batsman in tests, in India as well as SA? Can Manish Pandey be even thought as a candidate for that place? As for Irfan Pathan, I hope you people have read how BCCI is punishing him because he was working on his game get his swing back: The strange case of Irfan Pathan This is what Prem Panicker has to say: Also do note the case of Irfan Pathan, linked above. He loses his mojo, he feels underconfident, he goes to the academy — a BCCI run institution for god’s sake — to work it out. And when he is summoned for Duleep duty, he reckons he is not ready yet, he needs more work. And the outcome? He is *punished* by the BCCI.

[saneindian]

Who will be our number 6 batsman in tests' date= in India as well as SA? Can Manish Pandey be even thought as a candidate for that place?

Has to be one out of Raina or Kohli with Raina having the upper hand. Pandey still needs time to be prepared for int''l cricket especially Tests. The only other option I can think of is Manoj Tiwary if he does well on the England tour. But whoever it is the selectors have in mind, needs to play the tests vs SL in SL and Aus and NZ in India at no 6.

[Andy]

Has to be one out of Raina or Kohli with Raina having the upper hand. Pandey still needs time to be prepared for int''l cricket especially Tests. The only other option I can think of is Manoj Tiwary if he does well on the England tour. But whoever it is the selectors have in mind, needs to play the tests vs SL in SL and Aus and NZ in India at no 6.

My personal preference would be the best performer among Pujara, Manoj and Kohli. I dont want Manish and Raina, without a doubt they are more talented than the lads i named, but technically the blokes i named are efficient more. Even Rohit is a good choice if he can stay consistent.

[Chandan]

So how many batsmen are there on selectors' radar, if they are moving in a systematic fashion? INDIA 'A' Squad: Cheteshwar Pujara (capt), Wriddhiman Saha (vice-capt/wk), Abhinav Mukund, Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Manish Pandey, Saurabh Tiwary, Iqbal Abdulla, Sudeep Tyagi, Dhaval Kulkarni, Abhimanyu Mithun, Kedar Jadhav, Manoj Tiwary, Jaskaran Singh, Bipul Sharma, Jayadev Unadkat Second string India ODI side Squad: M Vijay, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Suresh Raina (capt), Virat Kohli (vice-capt), Rohit Sharma, Yusuf Pathan, Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Umesh Yadav, Vinay Kumar, Ashok Dinda, Pankaj Singh, Amit Mishra, Pragyan Ojha, Naman Ojha Apart from these, I'll also be keeping a close eye on A. Rayudu. Kohli Pandey Sharma These are the three batsmen who can replace the faltering stars in the main team. I'm doubtful about the long term success of Sharma as he seems to be going Yuvraj Singh's was in his life style and habits. But other two can certainly claim a place if they work hard. In the spinners, Ashwin can keep himself as a standby for Bhajji, with a strong show. Second spinner will always be Mishra or Ojha in that order. It is the seamers' condition which worries me the most. Who are the ones who can replace Zaheer and Ishant in tests if these two don't recover fitness/form in time?

[diegovegaz]

i hope our bowlers get noticed