A lot of players aspire to play international cricket for their country someday but unfortunately, only a handful make it. In India, millions dream of donning the blues. With such intense competition, a lot of talented youngsters miss out. In contrast, it sometimes so happens that a player who is not deserving of a place in the squad makes it to the team.
World cricket is replete with instances where a player has been rated more than what he offered on the pitch. We look at five such players.
Kraigg Brathwaite
Brathwaite’s technique may be celebrated among the purists but he has not been performed consistently at the highest level for Windies. He has shown his magic in a certain inning, one such being his 134 against England in Leeds in 2018 that helped Windies win a historic test in England. But after 70 tests, his average of 33 and a string of recurring low scores do not inspire much confidence if you are supposed to be the team’s best player.
Joe Root
Joe Root may be part of the fab 4 quartets but his performance as England’s best player and compared to the other three in quartet leaves a lot be desired. It is in crunch situations that Root does not anchor the team’s batting which he himself admitted after the loss against the Kiwis, a couple of weeks back. Lately, he may have had 2 double tons in India and Sri Lanka, but his overall performance has been lackluster and inconsistent.
Aiden Markram
Markram is considered a young prodigy in South Africa but his performances do not merit such praise. As one of their best batsmen, he is often inconsistent and found wanting against quality bowling attacks. In 47 innings so far, he has 5 hundred which translates to roughly one 100 every 10 innings.
Dinesh Chandimal
As Sri Lanka’s most experienced batsman, Chandimal has been a huge disappointment. The Sri Lankan selectors have provided him with abundant chances but he has failed to capitalize them in his 62 tests he has an average below 40 and has scored 11 hundred. His rate of scoring centuries is less than one every 11 innings. He has struggled when traveling to the SENA countries.
Usman Khawaja
He was supposed to be Australia’s answer for their middle order and spin woes. He did show some moments of brilliance in UAE in 2019 when he played the marathon match-saving knock. But for his talent and promise, he has not been able to consolidate his position in the squad.
