Cricket World Cup: 3 Indian players who were lucky to get selected in the last two World Cup squads
Securing a spot in Indian cricket team has always been a dream of all the young and budding cricketers all over the country. After getting selected for the Indian team, players would then aim to play in the prestigious World Cup which is held once in every four years.
Arguably one of the greatest batsmen of all time, Sachin Tendulkar spoke about the importance of India’s 1983 WC victory in shaping up his career in his early days. Likewise, many other legends in the past have spoken about the relevance of the World Cup. Until now many cricketers have fulfilled their dream of representing India at a World Cup.
The squad is typically selected after considering the performances of cricketers over a stipulated period of time. The same approach was adopted while selecting Indian squad for the upcoming World Cup. There have also been some cases where the players were selected on the basis of their unique abilities even though they were not a regular member or consistent performer in the Indian team.
In this slideshow, we will look at 3 players who were lucky to get selected in the Indian World Cup squads, even though they lacked the consistency required at international level. The players mentioned have a decent record in domestic cricket but have failed to live up to the expectations in International cricket.
Here are 3 players who were lucky to get selected in Indian World Cup squads since 2011.
#3 Stuart Binny (2015)
Team India was desperately in pursuit of an all-rounder during the 2014-15 season. Stuart Binny was seemingly the lone credible pace bowling all-rounder option available at that point in time. Binny made the most of the situation and performed consistently for the Karnataka team in the Ranji Trophy. His performances in domestic cricket along with all-rounder tag earned him a spot in the Indian ODI and Test squads in 2014.
The 2015 World Cup was held in Australia and New Zealand, so the selectors included Stuart Binny in the squad considering his all-round abilities. He did not get a game during the event as Ravindra Jadeja played as the all-rounder during the tournament.
He played 14 ODIs and scored 230 runs at an average of 28.75. On the bowling front, he has 20 ODI wickets to his name.
Apart from a few brilliant performances like 6/4 bowling figures against Bangladesh, Binny could not produce the desired results in the opportunities he got. It is quite clear that he had earned a spot in the 2015 World Cup squad due to lack of all-rounders in Indian cricket at that time but not on the basis of his form.
Binny has been out of Indian team ever since the emergence of enigmatic all-rounder Hardik Pandya. Binny last played an ODI in 2015 which was against South Africa.