India is currently participating in the 2022 T20 World Cup. It is likely that the team will enter the transition phase after this tournament. The focus will be on the 2024 T20 World Cup. For the New Zealand T20I series, BCCI named the squad on Monday. It was full of surprises because a few players who were expected to get a chance did not find a place in the squad. This is despite them doing well in domestic cricket and the IPL. On that note, here, we take a look at three players unlucky to miss the New Zealand T20I series despite strong domestic performance.
Squad for NZ T20Is:
Hardik Pandya (C), Rishabh Pant (vc & wk), Shubman Gill, Ishan Kishan, Deepak Hooda, Surya Kumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Sanju Samson (wk), W Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Harshal Patel, Mohd. Siraj, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umran Malik.
— BCCI (@BCCI) October 31, 2022
1) Prithvi Shaw
Of course, the one name most searched for on the squad list was that of Prithvi Shaw. The Mumbaikar, yet again, did not find a place in the squad.
In the past few seasons, Shaw has been brilliant in domestic cricket. Even in IPL, he has had a good impact in the powerplay, an area in which Indian openers usually struggle. In the ongoing Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, Shaw has 285 runs in 7 games at an average of 47 and a strike rate close to 200. Yet, the player did not get his chance despite the management resting all of India’s regular openers.
2) Ravi Bishnoi
Ravi Bishnoi is one of the players unlucky to miss the New Zealand T20I series despite a strong domestic performance. It was shocking to see that Ravi Bishnoi did not make it to the T20I squad against the Kiwis. Interestingly, in the ongoing T20 WC, Bishnoi is on the standby list. Kuldeep Yadav has been given a chance instead of Bishnoi.
The youngster is a fast leg-spinner and has a lot of variations to both pick wickets and contain run-scoring in T20Is. His performance in recent IPL seasons is proof of the same. Yet, the player not getting a chance was a big surprise.
3) Nitish Rana
Against Sri Lanka last year, Nitish Rana got an opportunity to make his India debut. However, he has been sidelined from the squad since then.
In the ongoing SMAT 2022, Rana has been the MVP. In seven games, he clocked more than 300 runs and that too, at an average of around 140. He also picked 11 wickets with an economy of just about 7. India needs left-handed middle-order batters and Rana also can provide some off-spin. Yes, he may not be the best against high-end pace in New Zealand but regarding the other selections, the management does not seem to have considered the weaknesses of the players.
