Players might get a national call after Vijay Hazare Trophy 2020-21
Domestic tournaments in India have been the platform for youngsters to prove themselves for the biggest stage. Especially since the inception of the T20 format, the focus on these tournaments has been immense. The selectors have always tried to strengthen the reserve bench.
However, Virat Kohli, Ravi Shastri, and Bharath Arun have been more focused on keeping substitutes ready for all possible circumstances. It can be an injury issue or workload management for seniors; the domestic tournaments have supplied a suitable number of players in frequent numbers.
In fact, this is the reason why India could win the Test series Down Under without most of the key players. Ravi Shastri recently said that the hectic and tight schedule of the Indian cricket team means the management might come up with two playing XIs for different competitions.
Indian cricket team will be playing the World Test Championship final against England at Lord’s. A possible chance of clash of schedule between the WTC final and Asia Cup; hence might see the BCCI selectors picking a second-string team for Asia Cup as revealed a few days back.
Quite naturally, keeping all such scenarios and schedules in mind, the selectors will focus more on the domestic tournaments to find the upcoming bright talents from all over the country to strengthen the bench.
The ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy 2020-21 has reached its final stage. A total of 38 teams are part of the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2020-21 divided into six groups. Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh will face each other in the first semifinal of the Vijay Hazare Trophy on 11 March at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi.
On the other hand, Karnataka will be facing Mumbai in the second game on 11 March at Palam A Stadium in Delhi. All sides have a good mix of young and experienced players and displayed good team efforts to reach this level. These youngsters of today are the future of Indian cricket. Like every other year, the Vijay Hazare Trophy has helped youngsters display their class and talent, which would help the selectors pick the best for the highest level.
Vijay Hazare Trophy, the prominent 50-over domestic cricket tournament this year, has witnessed some spectacular performance. We are looking at six such players from the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy 2020-21 who can make a national call for their good showings in the tournament.
Devdutt Padikkal
Devdutt Padikakal is the leading run-scorer in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy 2020-21. Padikkal already showed his class in the Indian Premier League. The selectors would like to give the young opener a chance on the national side after his consistency in domestic tournaments. Thanks to Padikkal’s fabulous batting, his team Karnataka has been able to fix a place in the semifinals.
The left-handed batsman Devdutt Padikkal has thus far scored 673 runs from six innings. He has also added four centuries and two half-centuries to his name in the tournament so far. No wonder he is going to be a key player for Karnataka in the final stage. Padikkal is definitely in the next batch of the Indian cricket team that the management is focusing on.
Ravikumar Samarth
Ravikumar Samarth is another batsman from Karnataka who has impressed one and all with his batting style. In the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy 2020-21, Samarth has smashed 605 runs at an average of 151.25, including three centuries and two half-centuries.
The Karnataka skipper also hit a 192-run knock in the quarterfinal match against Kerala and helped his team enter this prestigious tournament’s semifinal stage. With a strike rate over 105, Samarth is the second leading run-scorer in the tournament till now. He has also hit 68 fours and just behind Prithvi Shaw in the list of the most number of fours. He is also not much away from earning a national call after his magnificent performance in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2020-21.
Tanmay Agarwal
Tanmay Agarwal plays for Hyderabad in Vijay Hazare Trophy 2020-21. The 25-year-old left-hand batsman is the third name in the highest run-scorers list in the tournament so far. Agarwal has managed to score 446 runs in five innings. He has added two and a half-centuries in the tournament to his name, with the highest score of 150. His flashy innings helped Hyderabad win their last match in the tournament against Goa by just two runs.
Moreover, in every win of Hyderabad, Tanmay Agarwal has proved to be effective and provided key support at the top. After impressing everyone with his batting in Vijay Hazare Trophy 2020-21, Tanmay Agarwal should be another name on the radar of Indian national selectors.
Arzan Nagwaswalla
Arzan Nagwaswalla is the leading wicket-taker in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy 2020-21. In six matches for Gujarat so far, he has bagged 19 wickets at an average of 12.00 and an economy of 4.27. Nagwaswalla’s fiery bowling has helped Gujarat reach the semifinal in the tournament.
In the Elite Group A match against Chhattisgarh, Nagwaswalla took six wickets for 42 runs and never looked back. He was also impressed with his bowling in the quarterfinal match against Andhra, where he claimed four wickets.
Nagwaswalla has been the star performer for Gujarat in the tournament, and all eyes will be on him when Gujarat takes on Mumbai for the semifinal. In the coming days, Nagwaswalla will be in the shortlisted candidate list for national call-up after this prolific performance.
Priyank Panchal
The Gujarat captain Priyank Panchal is the second-highest run-scorer for the team. With 258 runs at an average of 51.60 and a strike rate of 79.87, Panchal has led the team as a dependable member. The third centurion for Gujarat in the ongoing tournament has also recorded his fifth List-A hundred in the quarterfinal against Andhra in the process. His experience of 74 List A matches and 3604 runs speaks for his ability.
Panchal is a deserving candidate, and it is high time that the national selectors think of recruiting this 30-year-old to the national cricket team. When it comes to workload management, the management allows youngsters. A reliable name from the domestic circuit should be trusted with national duty after this performance in Vijay Hazare Trophy 2020-21.
Shivam Sharma
Shivam Sharma from Uttar Pradesh is another bowler who has taken 19 wickets in six matches thus far at an average of 13 and an economy of 4.32. Moreover, he has already recorded two 5-wicket hauls to his name and hence has gained enough limelight in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy 2020-21. He is the second leading wicket-taker in the tournament currently despite making List-A debut in this tournament. He surprised everyone with 7-31 against Bihar first and 6-22 against Odisha. It is too early for the 20-year-old to get a call on the national side. He must show his domestic cricket effectiveness more, but his consistency can earn him a call soon, provided the management looks at him as a future investment.
