Fall and fall of India’s Test stars
STOCK EXCHANGE Naming an 18member Test squad for Australia is a sign that selectors aren’t sure of who will click
The selectors surprised everyone by announcing an all-inclusive jumbo team for Australia. An 18-member Test squad is unprecedented but there is a reason for Murali Vijay to return, Parthiv Patel to get one more go and Rohit Sharma to receive a wild card.
A fact check indicates Indian top Test players have underperformed and their careers resemble a car in reverse gear, hurtling rapidly downhill. Not sure who to trust to succeed in Australia — and confronted by collective decline — the selectors played safe and handed out boarding cards to whoever they could spot!
Virat Kohli dominates world cricket like no other — he is both Viv Richards and Sachin Tendulkar, ruthless domination combined with relentless hunger for runs. Unlike his colleagues, Kohli’s career is only going up. Kohli is an automatic choice but the indifferent form of others makes their selection subject to discussion.
RAHANE JITTERY
Ajinkya Rahane, the Test vicecaptain, owned a wonderful away record and his calm presence was crucial for stability in the middleorder. But he was benched in South Africa and after England, where he was sadly tentative, the 52-Test veteran faces awkward questions: Has he lost confidence, or is it a deeper technical issue?
Cheteshwar Pujara is another whose stock has eroded, he is not anymore the solid No 3 who could bat all day. Dropped in England, Pujara too is going through a mini career crisis after 64 Tests, almost 5,000 runs and 15 hundreds .
More worrying is the recent career trajectory of various India openers. Murali Vijay, usually so dependable (59 Tests, 4,000 runs, 12 tons) was undone by the swinging ball in England. Discarded and dumped after two Tests , chief selector MSK Prasad has now thrown him a lifeline. His partner Shikhar Dhawan is not so lucky and it seems his red-ball career has hit a massive roadblock.
Unlike Shikhar, Rohit, the white ball champion with 21 centuries, has earned a Test recall. Rohit was dropped after the first two Tests in South Africa and not played Ranji or Duleep in 2018. Yet, given the uncertain form of others, he could open in the first Test at Adelaide (December 6-10).
RAHUL MYSTERY
Why KL Rahul remains inconsistent and fails to nail a permanent place in Tests is a mystery. No less baffling is the confusion surrounding Karun Nair, who despite a Test triple ton, is out of the frame. He sat out in England and disappeared after that.
Like batsmen, top Test bowlers are also experiencing a mini career slump. R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja are down a notch despite 521 wickets between them. Replaced first in limited overs, then put under pressure in Tests. Ishant Sharma, the senior citizen among the quicks, bowled splendidly in England but none among Bhuvneshwar, Bumrah,
Shami, Umesh is sure of a first eleven spot.
Theories abound about the reasons for the decline of
Indian Test players and their stock to crash. That India played a different XI in 38 successive Tests could be a factor.
PUJARA IS ANOTHER WHOSE STOCK HAS ERODED. DROPPED IN ENGLAND, PUJARA TOO IS GOING THROUGH A MINI CAREER CRISIS AFTER 64 TESTS, ALMOST 5,000 RUNS AND 15 HUNDREDS .