3 Players who might have played their last T20I for India

After a successful Test series against South Africa where they whitewashed the visitors, India will now shift their focus to the upcoming three-match T20I series against Bangladesh. India have never lost to the Bangla Tigers in a T20I game, and they would love to keep the record intact.

The three-match T20I series starts on 3 November in Delhi. India’s regular skipper Virat Kohli isn’t part of the squad as he has been rested, so Rohit Sharma will lead the team in his absence. Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah still aren’t fit whereas Ravindra Jadeja and Bhuvneshwar Kumar haven’t been picked.

In the absence of Pandya, Shivam Dube has got his maiden India call-up whereas Sanju Samson has been selected after four years. Many young players are part of the squad, keeping in mind next year’s T20 World Cup.

In the last few years, India have been heavily dependent on the wrist-spinners in the shortest format. The likes of Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav have done so well that the other spinners are just not getting an opportunity. Even on the batting front, the youngsters who have done well in the IPL have taken up some of the veterans' places and almost shut the door on them.

On that note, let's have a look at three players who might have played their last T20I for India.

3. Ravichandran Ashwin

Time is running out for R Ashwin in the shortest format

There was a time when both Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja were a must in the Indian setup in all three formats. But after the 2017 Champions Trophy both were dropped from the shorter formats, and the wrist spinners took their place.

Jadeja managed to make a comeback with his batting and fielding skills but Ashwin still hasn’t managed to do so. With all the youngsters coming into the team it seems as if time is running out for the 33-year-old off-spinner.

Ashwin has tried several things with his bowling but he still hasn’t performed as expected. The problem with Ashwin is that his batting skills don’t suit the shortest format.

India is looking for wicket-takers in the middle overs and that job has been taken up by the wrist spinners. The emergence of young spinners like Kuldeep, Chahal and Rahul Chahar has prevented the selectors from going back to Ashwin.

In the last five T20Is that Ashwin played for India, he completed his full quota of overs in only two. He picked up just the two wickets and was pretty expensive as well, which led to his exclusion from the T20 setup. Even in the IPL he couldn't do anything special or noteworthy.

As of now, the young spinners are doing well and Ashwin is nowhere in the picture. If this continues for a while then it would be safe to say that he might have played his last T20I for India.

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2. Kedar Jadhav

With a few good performances in the ODI format Kedar Jadhav did get a place in the T20 squad, but he was never a certainty in the shortest format. Jadhav was never seen as a T20 player and that’s why he couldn’t seal a spot in the side.

The 34-year-old batsman has played only nine T20Is, with just one half-century to his name. He averages a tad over 20, which isn't good enough for selection. His bowling was never used in the shortest format either, which made him a one-dimensional player.

It is very difficult for one-dimensional players to keep their place in the side if they aren’t consistent enough.

Jadhav had a very poor IPL in 2019 as he scored only 162 runs at a below-par average of 18 and a strike-rate of 95.85. In the last four T20Is that he played for India, he scored only 31 runs. Jadhav is used as a finisher, and these numbers aren't good enough for any finisher.

Youngsters like Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya and Krunal Pandya are better suited to finish off a T20 innings. They have shown time and again what they are capable of. These youngsters with their power-hitting skills have almost shut the door on Jadhav in the T20I format.

1. MS Dhoni

At the moment, nobody other than MS Dhoni knows what his future in the game is. If you have seen Dhoni over the years, then you'd know it is almost impossible to guess what he is going to come up with.

Dhoni last played a game in Indian colors in July, when India lost the semi-final to New Zealand. Since then, Dhoni has made himself unavailable for all the series up until now.

Nobody is doubting Dhoni’s fitness levels and his keeping skills, but the question to be asked is whether he can still be the same batsman as he was. Dhoni's unavailability is prompting too many questions, which will remain unanswered until he himself speaks up.

From the outside Dhoni's T20 numbers still look good, but it is his big-hitting ability that has declined in the last few years. He has failed to rotate the strike at the start of his innings, especially against the spinners, putting immense pressure on his batting partner.

The selectors have finally come out and said that they have moved on and started planning for the future, naming a back-up for Rishabh Pant in Sanju Samson. So at the moment, there aren't any signs of Dhoni coming back into the squad.

He may or may not play for India again, but one thing is for sure: Dhoni will always be an Indian cricket legend.