India's tour of England: 5 players who should have been selected

Lets take a look at 5 players who missed the cut for the Test series in Indias tour of England.

#5 Kedar Jadhav

A fine classy batsman who can play the long innings, Kedar Jadhav was one of the few bright spots in this year’s IPL for the Delhi Daredevils. No stranger in the domestic circuit, Jadhav has been the mainstay for Maharashtra's Ranji Trophy campaign this year.

After a year of consistent performance in the domestic arena, Jadhav has found a place for himself in this month’s ODI series against Bangladesh. With the seaming English conditions, the selectors could have gone the extra mile by selecting Jadhav ahead of Stuart Binny.

#4 Mohit Sharma

This young lad has proven this year that he is more than a one-hit wonder by being among the wickets. Having been smartly retained by his IPL franchise, Mohit has earned the respect of his captain.

The IPL has always been witness to one-hit wonders since the first edition, and Mohit has just proved to us that he is here to stay for the good. With age on his side, and a crisp and clean bowling action, Mohit can prove to be a valuable asset in the bowling line-up that builds up to the World Cup next year.

The seaming conditions in England would have provided him with the experience he requires to mature into a better bowler.

#3 Umesh Yadav

It's baffling to say the least that Umesh Yadav has been excluded from the tour of England. Going in with a large squad with six fast bowlers, Umesh Yadav's exclusion is therefore something to think deeply about.

Being a 5 match Test series, injuries would be of concern for the Indians, and that was the driving idea behind selecting 6 fast bowlers. A bowler who has been consistently clocking the better part of 140s, Yadav has looked in good rhythm this season. He can consider himself unlucky for not making it to the touring party.

#2 Robin Uthappa

The man has displayed a comeback of sorts at the highest level and deserved to be on that plane that leaves for London in mid-June. Robin Uthappa is in the form of his life, and its time the selectors took note of the Karnataka batsman’s stellar performance in the domestic circuit this year.

Uthappa turned the tide for KKR this year, with the team riding high on some key performances from him to pull them up from the bottom of the points table. Instrumental in his team’s comeback in the second part of the tournament after being sent in as the opener, Uthappa showed good temperament and composure to consistently take the attack to the opposition. This man raised his hand whenever his team needed him all round the year, and he deserved the chance to play at the mecca of cricket.

#1 Sanju Samson

Growing up in the age of super-fast cricket and dead subcontinental pitches can provide a sense of delusion to young Indian batsmen about their talent, and there’s nothing better than a test of batsmanship on English pitches.

Having garnered praise from every cricketing fan on the planet, it seems like the right time for this rising star to get the feel of the real world. Coming from the Rahul Dravid school of cricket, Sanju seems to have the right temperament and composure for Test cricket. Going to England under the captaincy of a man they call Captain Cool, a wicket-keeper himself, it could have been the best thing the selectors could do to this young lad .

The prospects of even warming the bench and watching from close quarters in the English summer would have been a great learning curve for this young batting talent. Having proved that he is not just a one-hit Swapnil Asnodkar or a Paul Valthaty, Sanju has gone on to become one of the top batsmen for Rajasthan along with Ajinkya Rahane and Karun Nair.