Earning a place in the Indian team is the dream of almost every youngster who plays cricket in India. However, it is not everyone’s cup of tea to make it to the squad because only the best 15 players of the nation, who also get the favor of the luck, make it to the team.
BCCI’s selection committee often rewards the consistent performers of domestic cricket, U-19 tournaments and IPL with a place in the Indian squad. Sometimes, the players themselves were not expecting to be selected when they got a place in the team. Here’s a list of the four such players who earned a call-up to the Indian team when they were not expecting it.
1. Varun Chakravarthy was not expecting call-up to Indian team
Mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy earned his maiden national call-up for the T20I series against Australia in 2020/21. While Varun did not make his T20I debut on that tour, he said in an interview that he was not expecting to be in the Men in Blue’s squad for that series.
2. Jitesh Sharma was not expecting call-up to Indian team
Uncapped wicketkeeper batter Jitesh Sharma was picked in the Indian T20I squad for the home season in 2021. While Sharma did not get his debut cap, the wicketkeeper admitted that he was not expecting to be in the Indian squad for the 2023 home season.
3. Navdeep Saini
Fast bowler Navdeep Saini recently earned a recall to the Indian Test squad for the World Test Championship series against the West Indies. Saini had landed in the UK for his county stint but he took a flight to West Indies after coming to know about his unexpected recall.
4. Tilak Varma
Tilak Varma earned a call-up to the India ‘A’ squad last year. In a report by the Mid-day, Varma said that he was not expecting to be a part of the squad so soon.
