Who can replace ageing Dhoni and Saha?
Dhoni has been the man behind the stumps for India for a decade now. When he retired from Tests, Wriddhiman Saha took over the role. But with the West Bengal veteran now 33 and Dhoni 36, the BCCI should be looking out for options to replace the duo in the future. Here is our list of young keepers who can fill in their shoes.
Saha's injury woes expose India's problem
India are in a precarious situation, after wicket-keeper Wriddhiman Saha was ruled out of the Test series in South Africa due to a hamstring injury. Parthiv Patel donned the wicket-keeping gloves for the second Test and his performance was below par for a Test wicket-keeper. BCCI then announced Tamil Nadu veteran Dinesh Karthik as Saha's replacement. BCCI is not looking into the future.
Karnataka's strongman and seasoned campaigner
While the BCCI is not willing to give young cricketers a chance to prove their wicket-keeping skills in overseas tours, seasoned campaigner KL Rahul is definitely an option team India can look into. A classy top-order batsman, Rahul has doubled as a wicketkeeper-batsman in the IPL. Quick and agile, India could start trying out Rahul as an option in the future.
Flag bearer of cricket in football crazy Kerala
Sanju Samson was long tipped to be MS Dhoni's successor since his fantastic performance in the IPL 2013. Having made his India debut in 2015 against Zimbabwe, Samson has been a forgotten man. But still just 23, he is staking a claim to Dhoni's throne yet again with a fantastic 2017. Three consecutive tons in the Ranji Trophy has seen his stock rise.
The future of Delhi cricket
This young lad from Delhi is a serious India prospect. The former Under-19 India vice-captain recently slammed the second fastest T20 hundred off just 32 balls, which is a testament to his batting prowess. More of a naturally explosive batsman, Pant has a lot of time to work on his wicket-keeping skills, considering he is just 20.
Jharkhand's bright prospect
Former U19 captain, Ishan has had a breakthrough 2017 IPL, where he scored an impressive 277 runs in 11 matches at an average of 28 for Gujarat Lions. However, he failed to score big in first-class cricket. In Ranji 2017-18 season, Ishan has scored 484 with 4 fifties to his name at an average of 44.00, a poor show for a top-order batsman.
Ranji Trophy's triple hundred man
Not a regular household name, but Srikar Bharat is a wicket-keeper batsman for Andhra. He is the first wicket-keeper batsman to score a triple hundred in the Ranji Trophy, 311-ball 308 against Goa in the 2014-15 season. Since then, his performances have dipped a little bit, but since he is only 24, Srikar Bharat can work towards staking a claim to Saha's throne.
