3 Indian cricketers who did not do justice to their talent

Cricket is not the national sport of India but it is the most popular sport in the country. Moreover, calling cricket as a 'sport' in India would be a misnomer, the Indians consider it as a religion, followed in every corner of the country. The popularity of the game increased several folds after the memorable 1983 World Cup, when the Indian team won the prestigious title of 'The World Champions'.

Millions of talented aspiring cricketers are willing to represent the country at the International stage but to make it to the Indian squad, it requires tons of dedication, hard-work and persistence. However, not every player who made it to the final XI has been able to make most of the opportunity, despite the enormous talent they possessed. Here are three Indian cricketers who did not perform up to the expectations.

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#3 Dinesh Mongia

Dinesh Mongia was an elegant left-handed, middle order batsman who made it into the Indian side in the year 2001 because of his phenomenal performance in the domestic circuit. Unfortunately, in his debut ODI match against Australia he was run out, scoring just a couple of runs.

Despite of getting ample chances, Mongia could not prove his prowess as a batsman and managed to accumulate merely 1230 runs at an average of 27.95, in the 57 One-Day Internationals he played for India.

#2 Mohammad Kaif

Kaif celebrating after Natwest Trophy win

Mohammad Kaif stormed into international cricket when he scored a match winning 87 against a powerful English-bowling attack in the final of Natwest Trophy at Lord's in the year 2002. When Kaif came to the crease, India were reeling at 5 for 146 chasing a mammoth target of 326 and the chances of an Indian win appeared bleak.

Kaif crafted a match-winning partnership of 121 along with Yuvraj Singh for the sixth wicket, taking India home in a last over finish. Apart from his heroics with the bat, he was a phenomenal fielder which made him a regular feature in the Indian One-Day side. Despite his exceptional talent with the bat, Kaif could not convert the starts he got into big scores, evident from the fact that he managed to score only one century in the 125 One-Day Internationals he played for India.

#1 Hemang Badani

Hemang Badani was a technically sound and fluent batsman, who made it into the Indian team in the year 2000. Badani scored a decent 35 off 51 balls in his debut game against Bangladesh and stitched a crucial, match winning partnership with Sourav Ganguly. Badani grabbed immediate attention when he managed to score a brilliant century against a solid Australian bowling attack in 2001, though in a losing cause.

However, the left-handed batsman failed to cement his place in the star-studded playing XI of India because of his inconsistent performance with the bat. He represented India in 40 ODI matches, scoring 867 runs at an average of 33.35.