History vs Future of Indian Cricket

History vs Future of Indian Cricket 

Ever since their first World Cup victory in 1983, India has produced some of the greatest cricketers in world cricket. Whether it be bowler or batsman, the talent has always been there. So who are the Indian cricketers that have made a name for themselves on the big stage?

Sunil Gavaskar

Sunil Gavaskar, one of India's greatest opening batsman and captains was the first cricketer to score over 10,000 runs in test cricket. Making his debut in 1971 against West Indies, Gavaskar went on to score 35 international centuries which consisted of 34 in tests and just one in one day internationals.  Historically, Indian batsmen were not comfortable playing against fast bowling as they were brought up to play spin bowling. However, in one of India's home series in 1983, the year in which they won their first World Cup, Gavaskar produced one of hist greatest test centuries against the lethal and devastating West Indian pace attack, that included the likes of Micheal Holding: hooking, cutting and pulling them to all parts of the Feroz Shah Kotla ground in Delhi.   

Kapil Dev

Referring back to pace bowling, Kapil Dev was another of India's greatest cricketers. He was an all-rounder as well as another of the country's finest captains who lifted their first World Cup in 1983.  Dev adapted an aggressive style of cricket and was the catalyst for breeding young fast bowlers for India. Nowadays, India have that base covered with the likes of Ishant Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah and Under-19 star Kamlesh Nagarkoti.  But besides his ability to bowl with pace, he was just as destructive with the bat. Scoring 5248 runs at an average of 31.05 and taking 434 wickets at an average of 29.64, Dev was regarded as one of cricket's greatest all-rounders.

Sachin Tendulkar

Sachin Tendulkar, 'The Little Master' as he is well known as. Who would of thought that a 16-year old boy from the streets of Mumbai would go on to have such a incredible career as he has. 100 international centuries, a World Cup, being the leading run scorer in both Tests and one day internationals as well as being the first player on the planet to score a double century in a one day international,  who could of ask for more? Tendulkar is not just an icon in India but in world cricket also. A true gentleman of the game.

MS Dhoni 

Who can forget this guy? Mahendra Singh Dhoni is a superstar in India. Dhoni is one of or perhaps India's greatest wicketkeeper batsman and captain. He may have given up on Test cricket, but what a phenomenal career he has had so far, especially in the one day and twenty20 formats. Leading India to their first 20-over World Cup and second 50-over World Cup, who could ask for more from the 'Helicopter'?

Virat Kohli

Also known as 'King Kohli' or 'Cheeku'. The current India captain just seems to get better and better as a a cricketer. Having broken Tendulkar's record of the number of centuries at the age of 29 including 6 test match double centuries, the most by an Indian Player in test cricket, Kohli is certainly making a name for himself not just in Indian cricket but in world cricket also. The fact that he is 30, he still has lots of cricket left in him. Who knows what he could achieve throughout the remainder of his career. 

Hardik Pandya

Since the retirement of Dev, India have found it difficult to find a seam bowing all-rounder until this guy turned up. Although he isn't in the best of form with both bat and ball, he still has tremendous belief in himself, which is why he is still in the current one day and test squad.  Pandya  is not the only seam bowling all-rounder India have their sleeve, their are still some candidates who are willing to take up this role. One of those candidates is Vijay Shankar from
Tamil Nadu. In terms of bowling, Pandya has taken 68 wickets in international cricket, this includes all three formats. Shankar, who is yet to play international cricket, has taken 67 wickets in domestic league cricket, this also include all three formats. 

Future Prospects

Having just won their fourth Under-19 World Cup in New Zealand, India have found some more talent with bat and ball. Shubman Gill and Captain Prithvi Shaw were the two batsman who stood out for me during the majority of the tournament. The most impressive thing was their ability to time the ball by playing proper cricketing shots. Shaw was born in Mumbai where he also started playing junior cricket. Mumbai is also famous for producing talented cricketers like Tendulkar, Gavaskar and Rohit Sharma. Gil on the other hand was born in Fazilka, a small town in the state of Punjab in northern India. Gil scored a total of 372 runs throughout the tournament, making him the second highest scorer behind Alick Athanaze who scored 418. 

It will be interesting to see how these young talented cricketers perform in the 2018 Indian Premier League season. Will these youngsters be able to catch the eye of the Indian selectors for the upcoming tours to Ireland and England?   I admire the way Gil plays spin bowling, it's very similar to Kohli's style of play with the fine use of the sub-continental wrists and nifty footwork.