Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2021-22: Seam bowling all-rounders on Indian selectors' radar

Fast
bowling
all-rounders
will
also
be
on
the
IPL
teams’ radar
ahead
of
the
mega
auction.

All-rounder
Hardik
Pandya
is
no
longer
the
feared
all-rounder
that
he
used
to
be
and
his
back
will
perhaps
never
allow
him
to
be
the
brisk
fast-medium
bowler
that
he
was
once
upon
a
time.

In
the
ongoing
T20
World
Cup,
there
was
a
lot
of
debate
surrounding
Hardik’s
bowling.

The
Baroda-based
cricketer
was
picked
in
the
Indian
team
as
an
all-rounder,
but
the
colourful
player
did
not
bowl
against
Pakistan
and
bowled
only
a
couple
of
overs
against
New
Zealand,
where
he
conceded
17
runs.
He
also
did
not
bowl
in
the
preceding
IPL.

Thus,
the
selectors
will
now
have
to
look
at
the
potential
alternatives
and
cannot
just
bank
on
Hardik
and
the
Mushtaq
Ali
Trophy
will
provide
the
perfect
platform
for
the
likes
of
Vijay
Shankar
(Tamil
Nadu),
Shivam
Dube
(Mumbai)
and
Venkatesh
Iyer
(Madhya
Pradesh)
to
impress
the
five-member
panel.

Even
Saurashtra’s
31-year-old
Chirag
Jani
could
be
an
option
for
the
selectors
and
they
would
be
keenly
watching
his
performance.

The
selection
committee
would
also
be
keenly
looking
at
the
performances
of
the
spin-bowling
all-rounders
in
the
national
T20
tournament,
as
currently
the
top
five
in
the
national
team
are
pure
batters.

That
should
bring
the
performance
of
Krunal
Pandya
in
focus.
It
shouldn’t
be
a
surprise
if
Prithvi
Shaw
(Mumbai)
is
seen
bowing
his
off-breaks.

Apart
from
this,
all
the
players
would
be
more
than
keen
to
put
up
a
good
show,
knowing
that
the
mega
auction
would
take
place
before
next
year’s
IPL.

The
likes
of
supremely
talented
Maharashtra
skipper
Ruturaj
Gaikwad,
Devdutt
Padkkal,
Ravikumar
Samarth
(both
Karnataka),
Shedlon
Jackson,
N
Jagadeesan,
C
Hari
Nishaanth
(Tamil
Nadu)
will
be
among
others
would
want
to
make
a
statement
by
scoring
crucial
runs.

Meanwhile,
senior
players
like
wicket-keeper
batsman
Wriddhiman
Saha
(Bengal),
Ajinkya
Rahane
(Mumbai)
would
be
keen
to
lead
their
respective
sides
to
victory.

For
the
record,
the
teams
have
been
divided
into
five
Elite
Groups
and
one
Plate
Group,
which
will
compete
in
the
league
stage,
which
will
be
played
at
Lucknow,
Guwahati,
Baroda,
Delhi,
Haryana
and
Vijayawada.

The
Vijay
Shankar-led
Tamil
Nadu
would
surely
aim
to
defend
their
title
but
in
the
process
would
face
stiff
competition.

The
tournament
will
be
a
played
in
a
bio-bubble
for
the
second
year
in
a
row
due
to
the
COVID-19
pandemic.