Ever since the introduction of Rohit Sharma as an opener in any format, the man has completely changed the dynamics of the game. May it be Test, T20 or ODI, he is relentless, brilliant and untenable.
Given his hard-hitting prowess, he has already spent a staggering 14 years in the international roster and is now one of the most proficient batters of the world.
Despite a few tinkerings hither and yon, you can call him a crucible forged by India’s opening crisis. However, not every single cricketer that he made the debut with were fortunate enough to make the cut for the long run and succumbed to the gruelling demands of the sport.
In this story, we will take a quick look at five cricketers, who made their debut with or after the Hitman but faded away way too shortly.
#1 Abhimanyu Mithun
Towering at 6 feet 2 inches and blessed with immense strength, Mithun made an impression of an untenable fast bowler physically. Sadly for the fast bowler, his excessive and desperate attempts to produce the perfect ball landed him in and out of the national squad.
The man’s Test career would only take a flight for four Tests where he bagged 9 wickets with a best of 4-fer against Sri Lanka. He managed to play five ODI’s too but seemed rustier than the longest format. He is still a regular player in domestic cricket and plies his trade for Karnataka.
#2 Abhinav Mukund
This man had a very tragic ending to his international career. He started on an exceptionally sloppy note and could barely wriggle free from the clutches of mediocrity in the longest format of the game.
Despite a 62 against West Indies at Roseau and a valiant 49 at Lord’s, his culmination came in the last innings that he played in international cricket. The man managed to smash an ecstatic 81 against Sri Lanka but the damage was too overwhelming to be overhauled.
#3 Jaydev Unadkat
It was a bit harsh and unfortunate for this towering fast bowler as the only shot at glory for him came at Centurion against a full-blown South African squad. He came with a lot of promise and is still going strong in India’s domestic extravaganza, IPL.
However, his international residence was as short as it gets as he bagged just one Test under his belt and 7 ODI’s. Despite having a knack for wickets, his economy rate used to blow through the roof and it left him completely hammered.
#4 Praveen Kumar
In this list of hapless endings, the brightest moniker would definitely be that of Kumar’s. He made a series victory in Australia a reality for India and troubled bigger fishes of the game with an extraordinary nrand of swing.
However, a couple of bumps and anger outbursts were more than enough to knock him off the rails. He played 68 ODI’s and 6 Tests. Across all the formats of the sport combined, he managed to bag 112 international wickets.
#5 Varun Aaron
As India looked around desperately for fast bowlers who can kiss 145 plus clicks consistently, Aaron appeared as a blessing. The man made the headlines with the speed gun clocking 153 kmph in the Vijay Harare trophy.
However, the desire to emanate more and more pace left his line and length completely off the charts and just 9 matches into his career, India realised that his pace was a curse and not a boon. He managed to scalp 19 international wickets from the 18 appearances that he made in the international roster.
