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Indian fringe players disappoint, says Akram

— Photo: AFP

PICK OF THE LOT:Rohit Sharma's batting and Suresh Raina's captaincy were the plus points for the young Indian side.

New Delhi: Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram has said that the performance of most of the Indian fringe players during the ODI series against the West Indies has been disappointing.

He said that players like S. Badrinath, Shikhar Dhawan, Parthiv Patel and Manoj Tiwary, who made the ODI squad on the basis of their domestic performance and the IPL, failed to grab the opportunities in the Caribbean.

“India may have won the ODI series 3-2 against a new-look West Indian side, but I don't think the selectors will be happy with the performance of some of the fringe players who made the ODI squad because a clutch of seniors were unavailable,” Akram was quoted as saying by ESPNSTAR.com.

“Indian cricket is full of talented players and an opportunity wasted means you may never wear the national cap again. At the same time, any international assignment is a test of your ability. The West Indies team may not have looked great on paper but they did well to reduce the victory margin,” he said.

Akram also said that these youngsters had a long way to go before they could match the skills of legends like Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid.

“The fact that Dravid is completing 15 years of Test cricket at Sabina Park in Kingston, Jamaica, only strengthens the belief that the fittest survive in this amazing game.

Men like Dravid, Tendulkar and V.V.S. Laxman are true legends. They have lasted because of their discipline and of course, their eagerness to perform on every available stage,” he said.

Akram, however, heaped praise on Rohit Sharma saying that he had proved himself in the West Indies. “I had always believed in Rohit. He has loads of talent and this time he proved himself in West Indies.

“By becoming the Man-of-the-Series, Rohit has only improved his chances to become a regular member of the team.

Performance is the key

“Now, he should focus on playing Test cricket and if Rohit has to compete with the likes of (Virat) Kohli and (Suresh) Raina, consistent performance is the only way forward,” he said.

Akram also had a word of appreciation for Raina, who led the team in the five-match ODI series in the absence of M.S. Dhoni. “Raina's captaincy was promising. It's not easy to lead a team against any opposition but he would have learnt from the mistakes made during the ODI series.

“The Indian selectors must be appreciated because they are grooming a youngster to lead India in the future.”

Akram said that it would be interesting to watch the Test series where he was expecting to see Dravid and Laxman score big hundreds. “Dhoni will have his first-choice team for the Tests. The Indians must make the most of the three Tests.”

West Indies does not have those deadly tracks any more and India must bat long on these slow turning wickets.

“I am sure Dravid and Laxman will score a few big hundreds in what is likely to be their last tour of the Caribbean.” — PTI

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