Test Cricket Prediction and Discussion Thread [self - mod]

[FIFA worldcup]

Any comments on the 15-member squad announced by India for the 3-match series against South Africa?

Virat Kohli (Capt), Mayank Agarwal, Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane (vc), Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant (wk),Wriddhiman Saha (wk), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma, Shubman Gill

KL Rahul was replaced by Shubman Gill, which I thought was a wise move. Rahul was given enough opportunities and he failed to make use of them. For the wicket keeper slot, it is going to be a choice between Rishabh Pant and Wriddhiman Saha. I would go for Pant, given Saha's age. And I guess Kuldeep Yadav will have to sit outside, if Ashwin and Jadeja are picked as the spinners.

I think its a pretty decent selection. You cannot give chance to both the wicket keepers and the first keeper to be given a chance would be Rishabh Pant and if he performed well both beyond the stumps and with the bat,  Wriddhiman Saha will have no chance to play. As a matter of fact, these wicket keepers have to keep up with the standards of Dhoni which will not be an easy task.

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[Vishnu.Reang]

Any comments on the 15-member squad announced by India for the 3-match series against South Africa?

Virat Kohli (Capt), Mayank Agarwal, Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane (vc), Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant (wk),Wriddhiman Saha (wk), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma, Shubman Gill

KL Rahul was replaced by Shubman Gill, which I thought was a wise move. Rahul was given enough opportunities and he failed to make use of them. For the wicket keeper slot, it is going to be a choice between Rishabh Pant and Wriddhiman Saha. I would go for Pant, given Saha's age. And I guess Kuldeep Yadav will have to sit outside, if Ashwin and Jadeja are picked as the spinners.

I think its a pretty decent selection. You cannot give chance to both the wicket keepers and the first keeper to be given a chance would be Rishabh Pant and if he performed well both beyond the stumps and with the bat,  Wriddhiman Saha will have no chance to play. As a matter of fact, these wicket keepers have to keep up with the standards of Dhoni which will not be an easy task.

It may not be a bad idea to have different wicket keepers for both tests and ODI/T20s. Rishabh Pant is more suitable to the shorter formats of the game, when compared to test matches. For the tests, I don't want to go for Pant. My choice would be either Ishan Kishan or Sanju Samson. Don't want to talk about Dinesh Karthik or Wriddhiman Saha, as these guys get selection based on their closeness to the powerful members, rather than due to their talent.

[JSRAW]

He got some powerful backers among the selection committee, and has managed to secure his place despite repeated poor performances.

Don't want to talk about Dinesh Karthik or Wriddhiman Saha, as these guys get selection based on their closeness to the powerful members, rather than due to their talent.

No disrespect to your opinion bro but all of these sounds BS to me. wonder whats your sources are....

[deadley]

Any comments on the 15-member squad announced by India for the 3-match series against South Africa?

Virat Kohli (Capt), Mayank Agarwal, Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane (vc), Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant (wk),Wriddhiman Saha (wk), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma, Shubman Gill

KL Rahul was replaced by Shubman Gill, which I thought was a wise move. Rahul was given enough opportunities and he failed to make use of them. For the wicket keeper slot, it is going to be a choice between Rishabh Pant and Wriddhiman Saha. I would go for Pant, given Saha's age. And I guess Kuldeep Yadav will have to sit outside, if Ashwin and Jadeja are picked as the spinners.

I think its a pretty decent selection. You cannot give chance to both the wicket keepers and the first keeper to be given a chance would be Rishabh Pant and if he performed well both beyond the stumps and with the bat,  Wriddhiman Saha will have no chance to play. As a matter of fact, these wicket keepers have to keep up with the standards of Dhoni which will not be an easy task.

It may not be a bad idea to have different wicket keepers for both tests and ODI/T20s. Rishabh Pant is more suitable to the shorter formats of the game, when compared to test matches. For the tests, I don't want to go for Pant. My choice would be either Ishan Kishan or Sanju Samson. Don't want to talk about Dinesh Karthik or Wriddhiman Saha, as these guys get selection based on their closeness to the powerful members, rather than due to their talent.

Are you out of your mind, Wriddhiman Saha is best wicketkeeper in India. He was regular in test cricket before getting out because of injury, since then because of selector biasedness he  did no got chance again to play.

[7788bitcoin]

Don't want to talk about Dinesh Karthik or Wriddhiman Saha, as these guys get selection based on their closeness to the powerful members, rather than due to their talent.

No disrespect to your opinion bro but all of these sounds BS to me. wonder whats your sources are....

They are decent players and Pant is young and might have potential but he never showcased that in any of the matches as he fails for the same shot on the leg side and he is not learning from his mistakes and on the other hand India must go for other options as it is hard to replace a world class player like Dhoni who was a safe player and the best keeper batsman India ever had and Dinesh karthik and Saha are good options if they are in form.

@ Vishnu.Reang first time hearing that they were in the team because of politics, if not for Dhoni they would have being in the playing eleven with their keeping skills and batting contribution.

[JSRAW]

Don't want to talk about Dinesh Karthik or Wriddhiman Saha, as these guys get selection based on their closeness to the powerful members, rather than due to their talent.

No disrespect to your opinion bro but all of these sounds BS to me. wonder whats your sources are....

They are decent players and Pant is young and might have potential but he never showcased that in any of the matches as he fails for the same shot on the leg side and he is not learning from his mistakes and on the other hand India must go for other options as it is hard to replace a world class player like Dhoni who was a safe player and the best keeper batsman India ever had and Dinesh karthik and Saha are good options if they are in form.

I have a feeling that you are mixing T-20 with Test format, original discussion was about Indian Test Squad. having said that as of now Pant's numbers are pretty solid in Red ball cricket and he's the first choice of Selectors in the 5 day cricket, on the another hand in the shorter format his position are debatable due to recent performance (not a right thread so skipping it)

Dhoni is retired(Test), Dinesh kartik's Test career is finished.  @deadley already mentioned what actually happened with Wriddhiman Saha.

[Haunebu]

They are decent players and Pant is young and might have potential but he never showcased that in any of the matches as he fails for the same shot on the leg side and he is not learning from his mistakes and on the other hand India must go for other options as it is hard to replace a world class player like Dhoni who was a safe player and the best keeper batsman India ever had and Dinesh karthik and Saha are good options if they are in form.

Saha? I disagree. Karthik and Pant are much better selections in comparison. Who knows? Karthik could turn his form around in a major way and stun everyone by replacing Pant.

Dhoni is retired(Test), Dinesh kartik's Test career is finished.  @deadley already mentioned what actually happened with Wriddhiman Saha.

Honestly, Saha is easily one of the worst batsmen I have ever observed while Karthik seems to be out of form these days just like Pant. I would give them both equal opportunities in the short-term though none of them could probably never come close to how good Dhoni was.

[bryant.coleman]

Both Wriddhiman Saha and Dinesh Kartik are 34 years old. If India wants to replace Mahendra Singh Dhoni, then they should Ideally look for a permanent replacement, and not a temporary one. Both Kathik and Saha have a maximum of 2-3 years remaining. I don't know how their selection is going to be beneficial for the long-term well being of the Indian team. Kartik is out of form, as seen during the CWC 2019. Saha is a good player, but his prime days are behind him. And his batting performance so far this year was very ordinary.

Rishabh Pant is young, but he was given enough opportunities. One player who has caught my attention is Ishan Kishan. He is of the same age as Pant (21 years) and IMO, he should be given a chance for the remainder of this year. Obviously India being a cricket powerhouse, there is no dearth of young wicket keepers who can bat. I can give dozens of examples, including Ankush Bains, Sanju Samson, Harvik Desai, Smit Patel, and KS Bharat. But among all of them, I would say that Ishan Kishan looks the most promising one.

[JSRAW]

Dhoni is retired(Test), Dinesh kartik's Test career is finished.  @deadley already mentioned what actually happened with Wriddhiman Saha.

Honestly, Saha is easily one of the worst batsmen I have ever observed while Karthik seems to be out of form these days just like Pant. I would give them both equal opportunities in the short-term though none of them could probably never come close to how good Dhoni was.

Haha, if we compare Saha with current pool of Wicket Keepers in the world cricket then he's not that bad. in fact after fair comparison he might look decent WK batsman for no 7 or no 8 and there is no chance of Dinesh Kartik making comeback in Test Cricket.

[Avirunes]

Dhoni is retired(Test), Dinesh kartik's Test career is finished.  @deadley already mentioned what actually happened with Wriddhiman Saha.

Honestly, Saha is easily one of the worst batsmen I have ever observed while Karthik seems to be out of form these days just like Pant. I would give them both equal opportunities in the short-term though none of them could probably never come close to how good Dhoni was.

Haha, if we compare Saha with current pool of Wicket Keepers in the world cricket then he's not that bad. in fact after fair comparison he might look decent WK batsman for no 7 or no 8 and there is no chance of Dinesh Kartik making comeback in Test Cricket.

I agree. Dinesh Karthik is more like a finisher and get quite aggressive when we think over shorter format as in like T20's and ODI's but he isn't a Test material IMO. Saha on the other hand plays quite calm cricket in comparison to Karthik.

[onrise]

Dhoni is retired(Test), Dinesh kartik's Test career is finished.  @deadley already mentioned what actually happened with Wriddhiman Saha.

Honestly, Saha is easily one of the worst batsmen I have ever observed while Karthik seems to be out of form these days just like Pant. I would give them both equal opportunities in the short-term though none of them could probably never come close to how good Dhoni was.

Haha, if we compare Saha with current pool of Wicket Keepers in the world cricket then he's not that bad. in fact after fair comparison he might look decent WK batsman for no 7 or no 8 and there is no chance of Dinesh Kartik making comeback in Test Cricket.

Saha is a good keeper and can bat as well . Though he needs to be played more in order to get his self confidence as more coming out of team demotivates people . For one day and T20 Karthik is the best and for test math we would want now who stays permanent as Dhoni is now might not play much cricket.

[Vishnu.Reang]

Dhoni is scoring runs too slowly, and therefore he should concentrate on test matches instead of ODI/T20. However, his preference seems to be for the shorter format of the game. That is worrying, because I think Rishabh Pant is more suitable in the shorter formats. Dhoni's experience and patience is more needed in the 5-day format and the boys still need some more time to catch up with him as far as the test matches are concerned.

[JSRAW]

Dhoni is scoring runs too slowly, and therefore he should concentrate on test matches instead of ODI/T20. However, his preference seems to be for the shorter format of the game. That is worrying, because I think Rishabh Pant is more suitable in the shorter formats. Dhoni's experience and patience is more needed in the 5-day format and the boys still need some more time to catch up with him as far as the test matches are concerned.

I think you don't watch test cricket anymore? I don't see any other explanation of your reply, dhoni already took retirement from test cricket. He played his last test match back in Dec 2014.

[akhjob]

Okay, since a debate has been going on regarding the better wicket-keeper after Dhoni, let me show some Test stats of Dhoni, D Karthik, W Saha, R Pant and KL Rahul(since mentioned), shall I?



From what I see Pant is better than the others   Young age, Left-handed, Good average, Good number of catches and stumpings etc. So let's move on  

I can give dozens of examples, including Ankush Bains, Sanju Samson, Harvik Desai, Smit Patel, and KS Bharat. But among all of them, I would say that Ishan Kishan looks the most promising one.

Why I didn't add this bunch? Because I cant find their test stats 

[bryant.coleman]

From what I see Pant is better than the others   Young age, Left-handed, Good average, Good number of catches and stumpings etc. So let's move on  

I can give dozens of examples, including Ankush Bains, Sanju Samson, Harvik Desai, Smit Patel, and KS Bharat. But among all of them, I would say that Ishan Kishan looks the most promising one.

Why I didn't add this bunch? Because I cant find their test stats 

Pant is obviously the first choice for the selectors. But he hasn't lived up to their expectations, at least in the four-day domestic matches. His first class batting average is above 50 (which I would regard as very good), but recently he hasn't performed that great. His highest score during the test series against West Indies was 27 (apart from the 33 scored during an exhibition match against West Indies A). Regarding others such as Bains, Samson.etc, they haven't yet got a chance to play test cricket for India yet. You can check the first class stats, if you want to compare these players with established players such as Pant and Kartik.

[Haunebu]

From what I see Pant is better than the others   Young age, Left-handed, Good average, Good number of catches and stumpings etc. So let's move on  

This is old news and almost any Cricket fan is aware of these statistics. Pant is the best choice theoretically, but he is under-performing practically at the moment. As Ravi Shastri said, he will be given more opportunities, but he can't keep letting down his team every time.

A lot of pressure is on Pant currently, but if he can deliver under these conditions, he is the best suitable choice for the future. Also, KL Rahul needs to be given more opportunities too since he has high potential(Though he is not performing well these days).

[AB de Royse777]

From what I see Pant is better than the others   Young age, Left-handed, Good average, Good number of catches and stumpings etc. So let's move on  

This is old news and almost any Cricket fan is aware of these statistics. Pant is the best choice theoretically, but he is under-performing practically at the moment. As Ravi Shastri said, he will be given more opportunities, but he can't keep letting down his team every time.

A lot of pressure is on Pant currently, but if he can deliver under these conditions, he is the best suitable choice for the future. Also, KL Rahul needs to be given more opportunities too since he has high potential(Though he is not performing well these days).

Last 11 innings in all format: 4, 65, 20, 0, 33, 19, 24, 7, 27, 4, 19

http://www.espncricinfo.com/india/content/player/931581.html

In international cricket, whatever you are - you will need to perform unless you are Warner LOL


Have we considered this?
Pant already had a big fan base. His performance obviously made this. Now since he is not performing his standard, he is under pressure and the pressure making the things worse for him.

[akhjob]

From what I see Pant is better than the others   Young age, Left-handed, Good average, Good number of catches and stumpings etc. So let's move on  

This is old news and almost any Cricket fan is aware of these statistics. Pant is the best choice theoretically, but he is under-performing practically at the moment. As Ravi Shastri said, he will be given more opportunities, but he can't keep letting down his team every time.

A lot of pressure is on Pant currently, but if he can deliver under these conditions, he is the best suitable choice for the future. Also, KL Rahul needs to be given more opportunities too since he has high potential(Though he is not performing well these days).

Pant is just an year old in international test cricket. I don't follow domestic cricket, so I don't know much about it. Yeah he failed in some matches, I agree with that but that's true with other players too. Yes he falls for the legside ball, but don't you remember how many times sachin fell for the swings. He is still young have a lot of time to learn all we need to do now is give him some exposure to the international cricket, if he still fails after a year, we should give another young player maybe s samson or I kishan a chance.

[JSRAW]

debate

It was a wrong debate to start with various reason and everyone comparing his T-20 shot with his Test selection, Which is wrong IMHO. both format are different.

1. Dhoni is already retired in Test cricket.
2. Dinesh Kartik's Test career already finished.
3. Saha become back up WK in the Test cricket after his injury, he was first choice before that.
4. Pant is good to go for atleast 1 year in the Test Cricket, unless he mess up things with his keeping.

if he still fails after a year, we should give another young player maybe s samson or I kishan a chance.

*If you are talking about T-20 and ODI then i agree because everyone rates them high as Wicket keeper Batsman

*But if talking about test cricket then Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan are a mediocre batsman in the First-Class games with an average of around 36 ish and 38ish respectively. it considers normal as far as Indian First-class cricket is a concern and just to give you example ; Ravindra Jadeja has a average of 46ish and even Ashwin has a average 31ish, so i don't see them replacing Pant in Red ball cricket anytime soon. unless they make shitload amount of run in domestic season.

Sanju Samson                                                  
 

Ishan Kishan

[romero121]

From what I see Pant is better than the others   Young age, Left-handed, Good average, Good number of catches and stumpings etc. So let's move on  

This is old news and almost any Cricket fan is aware of these statistics. Pant is the best choice theoretically, but he is under-performing practically at the moment. As Ravi Shastri said, he will be given more opportunities, but he can't keep letting down his team every time.

A lot of pressure is on Pant currently, but if he can deliver under these conditions, he is the best suitable choice for the future. Also, KL Rahul needs to be given more opportunities too since he has high potential(Though he is not performing well these days).

Pant is just an year old in international test cricket. I don't follow domestic cricket, so I don't know much about it. Yeah he failed in some matches, I agree with that but that's true with other players too. Yes he falls for the legside ball, but don't you remember how many times sachin fell for the swings. He is still young have a lot of time to learn all we need to do now is give him some exposure to the international cricket, if he still fails after a year, we should give another young player maybe s samson or I kishan a chance.

Yes, Pant in my view is a good player. Even within the team selection process there is full of politics. Upon the same it is quite hard to find the right player. Young players were given chances in one or two matches if the series is being won by the first three matches. As mentioned more the exposure to the international game more will be the understanding and the performance. Think of Rohith, even when he wasn't performing good for a long he has been given chance. This helped him get back to form, by the time other players supported the team.