Alternate Indian cricket team ODI XI against West Indies

All-rounders – Vijay Shankar and Krishnappa Gowtham

Vijay Shankar has not played for India for a while

Before the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup, Vijay Shankar was regarded as one of the Indian cricket team’s brightest talents. Hardik had already come through the ranks but Shankar was still being considered for selection, highlighting the faith the Indian cricket team had in his all-round abilities.

A couple of flippant “three-dimensional” comments, three injury-ridden IPL seasons and plenty of cricket later, he finally seems to be emerging as the cricketer many believed he could become. He has skippered Tamil Nadu to unparalleled heights in the current domestic campaign and seems to have evolved as a batter too.

Moreover, he continues to perform his duties with the ball and that, considering the lack of other bowling options in the top six, propels Shankar as a possible middle-order batter.

Gowtham, on the other hand, was part of the Indian cricket team squad that toured Sri Lanka in July 2021. He didn’t play much but whenever he was called upon, he gave a decent account of himself. He couldn’t make his mark in the 2021 edition of the IPL but with his skill-set (a bowler who can bat handily) not being ubiquitous, his inclusion isn’t a huge surprise.

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Bowlers – Chetan Sakariya, T Natarajan, Umran Malik and Varun Chakravarthy

Can Varun Chakravarthy make himself a permanent fixture in the Indian team?

On paper, this bowling attack seems as inexperienced as any the Indian cricket team would have ever put out. But these are extraordinary circumstances and some of these cricketers are extraordinary talents themselves.

Sakariya has burst onto the scene in the past couple of seasons, mainly by picking up crucial wickets for the Rajasthan Royals. He can swing the ball and can bowl at the death too, meaning that he covers two bases if selected for the Indian cricket team.

Similarly, T Natarajan boasts a unique left-armer’s angle. He is arguably India’s second-best death bowler too (after Jasprit Bumrah) and can nail yorkers with immaculate efficiency.

Varun’s story, meanwhile, is a little more fascinating. He was fast-tracked into the Indian cricket team squad for the T20 World Cup. He deserved it too, especially after a breakthrough IPL campaign. Unfortunately, though, he wasn’t handled properly during the global event and didn’t have enough runs to play with whenever he bowled.

His mystery remains indecipherable and with middle-overs wickets morphing into a monumental concern for the Indian cricket team, Varun ticks a few more boxes than the rest of his competitors.

As for Umran Malik, well, there is nothing quite like raw pace, to be honest. He sets the pulses racing and has made the Indian faithful’s adrenaline pump as fast as it has done in recent times (still not quicker than his bowling though).

He can leak runs at times and has only played a handful of IPL games in his career. So, there is risk involved.

But if he can land the ball in the right places, he can wreak havoc. Most international teams would also not have had time to understand how Umran operates, meaning that this gamble definitely seems worthwhile.