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Top 5 Indian Players who surprising selection for the WTC Final Squad
Team India, after having trounced Australia on their soil and crushed England at home has reached the long-awaited final of the World Test Championship. Virat Kohli and his company will be playing against New Zealand in Southampton to be held from 18th to 22nd June. England lifted the trophy of the inaugural World Test Championship. In the 20-man squad for the WTC final as well as the five-test series against England there, both K.L. Rahul and Wriddhiman Saha have been included but they will have to clear the fitness test. Rahul had a recent appendicitis surgery and Saha tested Covid-19 positive. Along with the 20-man squad, four cricketers will be traveling
As stand-by cricketers. They are Abhimanyu Easwaran, Prasidh Krishna, Avesh Khan, and Arzan Nagwaswalla.
Interestingly, a few cricketers have not found their place in this tour which seems surprising. According to cricket specialists, someone should have been in the squad considering the unpredictable English weather, and someone deserved considering his recent form.
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Let us look at 5 surprising selection choices in India’s World Test Championship final squad.
Arjan Nagwaswalla
Arjan Nagwaswalla is one of the newest members of the standby players list. Well, it has been a good couple of years for the bowler. During the 2018-2019 Ranji Trophy, he made headlines after picking a five-wicket haul against Mumbai. As Test cricket throws some tough challenges for cricketers, Arzan, if lucky, could find himself bowling to the best batsman in the world.
The left-arm pacer can bowl at proper lines and lengths with consistency. In 16 First-Class matches, he has picked 62 wickets so far. An economy of 3.02 shows that he has the patience to wait for the batsman to commit a mistake. Well, it will be very interesting to see how he bowls if he makes it to the squad. But, the reality is, there is a small possibility for Arzan to make his debut during the English tour. Standby players are often not required unless there are no senior players available. But, cricket is well known to throw surprises to the fans and Arzan’s selection is another example. After BCCI announced the squad, his inclusion will make him popular for sure. He is one of the 5 surprising selection choices in India’s World Test Championship final squad.
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Prasidh Krishna
Prasidh Krishna’s pace enabled him to get into the national squad. But he is also one of the 5 surprising selection choices in India’s World Test Championship final squad.
He made his debut during the home series against England. Although he managed to pick up some wickets, his economy rate was on the higher side. In three games, Krishna bowled at an economy of 6.91.
During the first half of the IPL, Krishna underperformed. With 8 wickets in 7 matches, he had an economy of 9.16. The fact that he has been conceding runs at a poor economy rate shows that his consistency is not up to the mark. Poor line and length will enable any batsman in the world to put away bad deliveries.
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As India gets ready to face the Kiwis, the selection of Krishna will spark some questions. Is he the perfect bowler for the conditions? Should he play in the final? Well, there is a big uncertainty about how things work at the Test match level. No one had predicted that Shardul Thakur and Mohammed Siraj would be the leaders of our pace attack in Australia.
Abhimanyu Easwaran
This Bengal batsman might be one of the key batsmen in Bengal but his inclusion in the Indian squad although as a stand-by player has brought surprise among the cricket fraternity. Easwaran’s performance in the Vijaya Hazare Trophy this year was mediocre as he had scored only 220 runs in the team's five group level matches as Bengal had crashed out of the competition from the group league phase. Even this 25-year batsman did not get a call from any of the franchise teams in the Indian Premier League (IPL). His last noticeable performance was in the 2018-19 Ranji Trophy when he scored 861 runs in six matches. Having featured in India's 'A' squad almost regularly, Easwaran got the desired call in the Indian squad
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Bhuvneshwar Kumar
Swing and Bhuvneshwar Kumar is a vice-versa. He might not have the express pace to trouble the batsman, but his ability to swing the ball is an asset for any team as well as a sheer threat for any batsman, especially in the unpredictable English conditions. Kumar has been always successful in England. His best bowling figure was in England when he bagged 6 for 82 and helped India to put England under pressure at Lords in 2014.
But, injuries have hampered his career significantly. A bowler who made his Test debut in 2013 has only played 21 Test matches is a sad story. Although he has excelled in ODIs, his total appearances in Test matches are low. But, even after playing 21 games, he has picked 63 wickets. Adding on, he has an excellent economy rate of 2.95, which means he does not give away runs easily. Mohammad Siraj and Umesh Yadav have been selected for the WTC final. But Yadav is generally not regarded for swinging the ball. Kumar could have been included in the 20-man squad. Kumar also can contribute with the bat while his Test batting average is 22.08, which is not bad for a tail-ender.
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Prithvi Shaw
Prithvi Shaw is probably in the form of his life. He was dropped from the India team following a miserable show in the Test series against Australia. But he came back with a great performance, smashing 827 runs in nine games in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. Additionally, his current IPL form should have been a plus point for his chances to make it to the squad.
Shubman Gill has been out of form since the Test series against England. He has not been able to score consistently and his form might become a huge problem for the lineup. Playing Jimmy Anderson under English conditions is a tough challenge. During the first half of the 2021 edition of the IPL, Shaw was the best batsman.
Well, his exclusion will spark some questions. On his debut, he was flawless and he scored a magnificent century. But, since his form dropped, he had to make way for Gill. Currently, he has played just 5 Test matches with an average of 43.37.
Why Prithvi Shaw’s omission is surprising?
Having scored 827 runs in Vijaya Hazare Trophy and 308 runs in only eight matches in the IPL 2021 Shaw was expected to get a call in the Indian team for the WTC final.
Why Arjan Nagwaswala’s inclusion as a stand-by player in the Indian contingent for England tour has brought surprise?
Nagawaswalla does not have any experience of playing in international cricket. He has played only 16 first-class matches and claimed 64 wickets. Despite the least experience, his inclusion has brought a surprise to the cricket fraternity.
