When England toured India the last time around, the men in blue had some issues in the spin department. While Ravindra Jadeja was having issues with fitness, Kuldeep Yadav was not in the best form. Hence, India had tried a lot of options before settling in with Axar Patel, who has been excellent ever since he made his debut. Here, we take a look at two left-arm spinners India selected unsuccessfully before Axar Patel made his debut.
While India took a long time before they arrived at Axar Patel, they should not make the same mistake in the coming years. Both Jaddu and Ashwin are in the final few years of their careers. Hence, it is the right time to groom someone like Manav Suthar and Nishant Sandhu.
1) Shahbaz Nadeem is one of the spinners India tried before Axar Patel made his debut
When it comes to the Ranji Trophy, there was a phase of a few years in which Nadeem was always at the top of the highest wicket-takers. Even now, he is active in the tournament and is doing well. After doing so well in domestic cricket, he had a chance to play for Team India. However, Nadeem just could not replicate the impact at the highest level. Once Axar Patel made his debut and did well, Nadeem just could not make a comeback to the side.
2) Saurabh Kumar (could not make his debut)
Before Axar Patel, India had toyed with the idea of introducing Saurabh Kumar to international cricket. While he was a part of the squad for a few tournaments, he could not make his debut. Later, there was a phase of some months in which Saurabh was not doing well and before long, Axar Patel had arrived. That said, Saurabh still has a chance. He recently did well for India A in South Africa. Hence, he still can force a comeback to Team India. Hence, Saurabh is one of the spinners India selected unsuccessfully before Axar Patel made his debut.
