5 Indians who made their ODI debuts against Australia but faded away too soon
Over the past decade, plenty of promising young cricketers have made their debuts for India in one-day internationals, but the transition to the highest level has often proven to be a bit too much to handle for most of them. It is not really surprising that a large chunk of cricketers have faded away from the horizon following a short career at the highest level, and due to the intense competition for places.
However, a cricketer who is picked to play his very first game against Australia must have done something right to be considered good enough to debut against, historically, one of the best cricket teams.
Some Indian cricketers took the opportunity and shone on their debuts against Australia, while others flattered to deceive and eventually faded away. Here is a look at five Indian cricketers who faded away after making their ODI debuts against Australia.
#5 Kirti Azad
All-rounder Kirti Azad was selected for India's tour to Australia in 1980-81 and even at the time, it was thought to be a rather left-field choice from the selectors. He debuted in the third ODI of the Benson & Hedges World Series Cup against Australia at Melbourne and ended up having a forgettable outing. Azad struggled with the bat, scoring just four runs off 22 balls at No.5. He did not get to bowl.
Later, he was selected for the 1983 World Cup in which he had his finest hour when he cleaned bowled Ian Botham in the semi-final, helping India win the game. However, his career gradually petered out and he played the last of his 25 ODIs in April 1986.