IPL 2014: The Expendables - 5 players who can make a comeback to Team India

2. Gautam Gambhir

Gautam Gambhir

Gambhir’s exclusion followed a string of unconvincing performances at the top of the batting order, but it seems that his continued absence from the squad has more to it. His temperament has come under a great deal of scrutiny as he is perceived to be a player who loses his cool in tense situations; something that has come to greater light with his leadership of the Kolkata Knight Riders.

Gambhir was instrumental for India in the World Cup triumph, playing some significant innings, including a scintillating 97-run knock in the final, but his fall from grace has been sudden and complete. The whirlwind honeymoon success achieved by the new opening pair of Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma has ensured that his name has been quickly forgotten.

The good news for Gambhir is that he has been retained by Kolkata Knight Riders. The franchise has invested a great deal of faith in Gambhir’s cricketing and leadership skills, backing him to repeat the title-winning campaign that he led in 2012.

He needs to bring a degree of composure to his leadership, return to his basic skills when wielding the willow, and pay the least possible attention to the circulation of his name in the media. The age factor is on his side as he is relatively young, and the fact that he opens the batting means that he will get the maximum possible time to influence the game with his bat.

If he can string together a set of significant performances, score over 600 runs in the tournament, and project a composed figure, then there is no reason why he can’t be bleeding blue once again.