4 prodigies of Indian cricket who could not make a big name for themselves

Donning the India jersey is the matter of pride for any Indian player. For most of the players, the jersey remains an elusive dream and for few it becomes a reality. The responsibility that comes with having your name on it is huge, and only handful are able to cope up with the ever mounting pressure of expectations and responsibilities. The pressure becomes insurmountable, when you start young into a game people treat as a religion.

Cricket is a religion in India and there are expectations attached every time a player comes on the field to perform. Millions of eyes watch every shot played, every dot ball and every chance missed as a batsmen, bowler or a fielder. The mistakes never escape the eye, if they have an impact on the eventual result.

The expectations start building up from the early stage of a career. In Cricket, U-19 events like World Cup and Asia Cup are big tournaments. Any good performance made in such events is etched into the memory forever and often pave the way to the entrance in senior team.

In the past, there have been many performances in the U-19 tournaments, which have catapulted the players to the epitome of success. Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Shikhar Dhawan, Virender Sehwag are some of the finest, who rose after their brilliant performances in their U-19 roles.

While the U-19 tournaments have given Indian team some of their finest players, there are players who couldn’t make it big in the International cricket. Although, most of them played in big tournaments and important matches, yet the success always eluded them. Let’s have a look at few of those players.

Ambati Rayudu

Ambati Rayudu

2018 was a year to remember for Ambati Rayudu. He had a tremendous IPL season for Chennai Super Kings (602 runs with an average of 43). He was included in the Indian team and received the backing of his captain Virat Kohli as he played few handy knocks for hsi country. A century this year has all but sealed Rayudu's spot in the Indian team.

A quick look at the history tell us that apart from some decent performances in year 2014, the right-hander has had an underwhelming career so far. The chances have been sporadic and never has he got an extended rope to perform.

He captained the India team in the 2004 edition of U-19 World Cup and was impressive during the tournament. After the tournament, he slipped off the radar, dabbled with the ICL, and even had issues with his temperament. However, after a stop start career, he is finally in the team doing justice to his potential.

Unmukt Chand

Unmukt Chand

Touted as the next Virat Kohli, Unmukt Chand lost his way immediately after the success of the Under-19 team. He led the side to a historic win in Australia and came under the spotlight. However, he never graduated to the next level and despite having the talent and abillty, remains aloof from any discussions when it comes to the Indian side.

He couldn’t make it big while playing for the Mumbai Indians and for the other IPL sides and this further eroded his chances.

Lack of runs and his comments on politics in the Delhi dressing room didn’t helped his cause. Chand became the classic case study for youngsters fresh out of the victory in U-19 tournaments on how not to handle your career.

Parthiv Patel

Parthiv Patel

Parthiv Patel made his Test debut in 2002 at Nottingham and showed some dogged resilience, which allowed India to save the Test match. He added 28 runs in partnership with Zaheer Khan for the ninth wicket and faced 12 overs of gruesome pace and swing bowling by the Englishmen. As he walked down the pavilion, he got a little pat on the back by Nasser Hussain, who captained England in that series.

However a series of below par scores against West Indies and New Zealand at home and in away series against Australia and New Zealand was enough to raise doubts on his batting technique. An average performance behind the stumps didn’t helped his cause. It was the time when India was looking for a reliable wicket-keeper. In ODIs, the team was reliant on Rahul Dravid as the wicket-keeper.

The stage was set for Parthiv to emerge as the answer to the desperate calls of the national team. Unfortunately for him and fortunately for India, Dhoni made his debut towards the end of 2004. An impressive 148 against Pakistan in Faisalabad by Dhoni ensured a pause in Parthiv's career.

However, a string of scores in Ranji Trophy has ensured that the selectors still repose their faith on Parthiv as the second wicket-keeper in the squad for the Australian tour.

Robin Uthappa

Robin Uthappa

Arguably the most promising and talented of this list. Nicknamed ‘The Walking Assassin’, for his ability to march down the track to fast-bowlers and then hit the ball on the up, Uthappa made his debut for India in the home series against England. It was a dream start to the career as he made 86 runs with a strike rate of 90. He was well on the verge of slamming a century on debut, before the innings studded with 12 fours and a six, was cut short via a run-out

The promise he showed in the very first match of his career was immense, but he failed to live up to the expectations built around him. He did a few fine knocks, but those were too few along with some sporadic performances. The availability of batsmen like Yuvraj Singh, Gautam Gambhir and MS Dhoni did not helped his cause as they all were irreplaceable at the peak of their careers.

Another area of improvement for him is to bat consistently by using some proper cricketing shots. He has thrown his wicket on several occasions in the name of improvisation.While all the funkiness is appreciable, he could have prized his wicket more.