12 talented Indian batsmen who fared below par at international level

There have been some who fare tremendously well in domestic cricket and are touted the ‘next big thing’ at international level but fail to get going at the grand stage.

Some cricketers get their rightful due and some get to hog more of the limelight because of circumstances. That is how unfair the beautiful old game can be at times. There have been some who fare tremendously well in domestic cricket and are touted the ‘next big thing’ at international level but fail to get going at the grand stage. Ankit Banerjee identifies and narrates 12 such careers, which did not shoot-off like it was destined to.

 

 

1.  Sanjay Manjrekar

Many in Bombay-cricketing circles during the early 90’s rated Sanjay Manjrekar very highly. They felt he had a better all round game than Sachin Tendulkar. He had problems in getting off the blocks and was too defensive at times. He played 37 Tests and scored 2043 runs at an average of 37.14. His One-Day International (ODI) record wasn’t up to the mark as well. In 74 ODI, he amassed 1994 runs at 33.23 and a strike-rate of 64.30. Numbers not good enough for a technically obsessed batsman who averaged over 55 in First-Class cricket and was touted to be the next ‘Sunil Gavaskar’.

 

 

2.  Vinod Kambli

Many are still convinced that he was better than Sachin Tendulkar. They reckoned he had a better all-round game than the master. His career got off to a Ferrari-like start with daddy hundreds and doubles but he soon evaporated from the scene due to inconsistency and lack of discipline. He played only 17 Tests as he was on and off the team and scored 1084 runs at an average of 54.20, which is brilliant. In ODIs, he scored runs at 32.59. For a man whose First-Class average touches almost 60, much more was expected from this stylish southpaw, who could have been a world-beater.

 

 

3.  Mohammed Kaif

This is debatable but come to think of it he was lucky (right place at the right time) and his luck ran out of petrol finally. Undoubtedly, a livewire on the field but with the bat he always gave you an impression that something about the pitch is not all that right. He did play some very crucial knocks in ODIs and who can forget the Lord’s moment of 2002. The ODI specialist’s inability to build an all-round game magnified with the emergence of Dhonis and Rainas.  He played 125 matches and has scored 2753 runs at 32.01. In 13 Tests that he played, he scored only 624 runs at 32.84. He’s 34 and last played for India nine years back. Wasn’t the apt end for a man who was tipped to be the next Indian captain. One however felt that Kaif’s exceptional fielding at times overshadowed his dismal run with the bat.

 

 

4.  Rohit Sharma

Seven years since his international debut and he is still a talented prodigy. That’s been Rohit’s story.  From the time he made inroads in Team India’s scheme of things, he has always remained an ‘Exciting Upcoming talent’. He has got more opportunities than any other Indian cricketer of recent times but has still not evolved into the cricketer, he should have been. Despite being the only man to score two double hundreds in ODIs, Rohit has taken a lot of time to bloom in the shorter format and is still struggling to find his foot in Test cricket. Rohit averages 37.82, 39.20 and 30.79 in Tests, ODIs and T20Is respectively. The numbers may not look bad but for the amount of time he has spent in the side and the skills that he possesses, Rohit should have done more.

 

 

5.  Ajay Sharma

In terms of averages (players who have batted in more than 50 innings), only Don Bradman, Vijay Merchant and George Headley average more than him. Ajay is another Indian cricketer who promised a lot but could not live up to his prowess and fizzled away early. He played 129 First Class matches and scored 10120 runs at 67.46, now just compare that to his ODI stint, it gives one a different take altogether.  In 31 ODIs, he has scored 424 runs at 20.19. He played a solitary Test in 1988 but couldn’t make a great impact.

 

 

6.  Wasim Jaffer

Another Mumbai run-machine, Jaffer has played 223 First Class matches and amassed 16845 runs at 50.58 but talk of the place where the big daddy’s exist, the international Test arena, he has played in 31 Tests, compiled 1944 runs at an average of 34.10. Despite the two fluent double tons, he somehow got over-awed by the stage and his temperament snapped and that saw the back of Jaffer.

 

 

7.  Ashok Malhotra

Technically so sound that parallels were drawn with Gundappa Vishwanath but Malhotra never stormed the big stage. He had the artillery, which vividly made one believe that he is here for big things. An attractive right-hand middle-order batsman who played 156 First Class games and scored at 50.95 was a gem of a batsman. He averaged 25.11 in the seven Tests that he played and getting a longer run in ODIs, he managed just 457 runs from 20 ODIs at 30.46.

 

 

 

8.  Shiv Sundar Das

He came in as the answer to India’s long persisting problem of openers. He was India’s first-bet opener for a while; he disappointed his backers by failing to convert numerous good starts. He was a forlorn figure during India’s tour of West Indies in 2002, where he was repeatedly found stuck on the back foot, unable to judge the length against the tall West Indian fast bowlers. He played 23 Tests scoring 1326 runs at an average of 34.89 ,which does not account for the prowess and potential he had.

 

 

9.  VB Chandrasekhar

He was the older variety product of Virender Sehwag, Chandrasekhar was swashbuckling in his approach but ended up being a domestic hero and not an international legend. In his playing days, there were occasions when he even managed to outshine his Tamil Nadu partner Kris Srikkanth. Chandrasekhar played 81 First Class matches scoring 4999 runs at 43.09. He averaged just over 12 in the 7 ODIs that he played.

 

 

 

10.  Parthasarathy Sharma

The man from Alwar was a dominant force to reckon with in the domestic circuit during the 70s not so in the international scene, though his career got off to a reasonably good start. Pathasarathy could have been the much-needed genuine all-rounder.  He had a promising beginning, scoring 54 and 49 on debut against West Indies in Delhi in 1974-75. A less successful outing in the next Test, in which he scored 6 and 9, had him axed. He played five Tests managing 187 runs at an average of below 20.

 

 

11.  Pravin Amre 

Getting a Test ton on debut is great but doing it in alien conditions makes it even sweeter that is exactly what Amre accomplished. His 246 for Rest of India against Bengal is still the highest by any bastman in the Irani Trophy. Amre  scored a 103 against South Africa on debut at Durban in 1992-93 under difficult conditions, against a strong attack. Amre didn’t do much of note thereafter and even in ODIs, he struggled. In 30 innings, all he managed was 513 runs at 20.52.

 

 

 

12.  Sadagoppan Ramesh

Ramesh found himself at easy when facing the likes of Shoaib Akhtar, Wasim Akram, Saqlain Mushtaq and other Pakistani bowlers. He made the cut on the back of domestic credentials and played 19 Tests and scored 1367 runs at 37.97. The Chennai-born also featured in 24 ODIs amassing 646 runs at 28.08. He had the gift of timing and a big match temperament but his lack of footwork exposed him in testing conditions. Inability to convert the starts, Ramesh in 2001 found himself out of the side.

 

 

(A cricket geek to the tee, Ankit Banerjee smokes and snorts it all day long. The romance with the sport incepted since the 1996 World Cup semi-final. He is a winner of the 2011 edition of the All-India college cricket quiz.)

• 
• 
• 
•