Can India Bat Left-Handers From No. 1 to 11 In A Near Future?

image-llgjpwy2Rishabh Pant in action for India (AP)

Indian cricket’s aging warriors, most notably Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Ravindra Jadeja, and Ravichandran Ashwin among others, will eventually hang up their boots within the next few years. Thankfully for Indian fans, the country’s cricketing ecosystem keeps churning out sparkling young talents every year.

As one can expect, the stars of tomorrow have already set their names in motion today, with several up-and-coming cricketers making the most of their early opportunities. Surprisingly, this huge talented pool of up-and-coming Indian stars consists of a number of proficient left-handers across both departments, bat and ball.

The likes of Rishabh Pant and Ishan Kishan’s southpaw batting diligence, coupled with numerous left-arm bowling candidates graduating from IPL every year has ensured that Team India’s future is more than just secured, at least on the sinistral front.

To celebrate this gifted bunch, here at OneCricket we form a possible playing XI from all left-handed youngsters who can frequently represent the Indian national side in the coming years.

Openers: Ishan Kishan and Yashasvi Jaiswal

Ishan Kishan blasted his way to Indian team in 2021 following a string of profitable IPL seasons for Mumbai Indians. The youngster, having featured in only a handful of internationals since debut, already has an ODI double-ton to his name.

His opening partner Yashasvi Jaiswal, fresh off a successful West Indies tour, has become the latest to join the race to become the next stalwart of Indian batting.

Middle-Order: Sai Sudharshan, Tilak Varma, Rishabh Pant and Rinku Singh

Gujarat Titans’ batting resolute Sai Sudharsan holds an impressive average across all formats within Indian domestic competitions. The 21-year-old has all the sparks to become an ideal number three, a position vital to a team’s innings regardless of the conditions.

Tilak Varma returned with a tour to remember from West Indies, leaving runs in every inning he turned up for Team India. Rishabh Pant has already proven himself to solve India’s wicketkeeping conundrum until the next generation with several match-winning efforts across both sides of the stumps.

Lastly, IPL cult hero Rinku Singh is on a path to greatness, if his track record for KKR is any indication.

All-Rounder: Axar Patel

Axar Patel’s dexterity with both bat and ball orchestrated a remarkable Test series win for India against the touring Australians earlier this year. The left-arm spinner, while lethal with a ball in hand, has also earned a reputation of a being batting barbarian, especially in clutch run-chases and tense death overs.

Bowlers: Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Mohsin Khan and Khaleel Ahmed

Kuldeep Yadav is to India’s white-ball line-ups what Ravi Ashwin is to Tests - a spin leader capable of adapting into playing conditions. With talent and age on his side, Yadav might well lead India’s spin department in all formats for a good part of the next 10 years.

On the fast-bowling front, Arshdeep Singh ensured Jasprit Bumrah’s absence was not felt by the Indian contingent at the 2022 T20 World Cup last year. The dynamic speedster can navigate the new-ball upfront, and lead fellow up-and-coming left-arm quicks Mohsin Khan and Khaleel Ahmed.


India’s Emerging Left-Handers XI

  1. Ishan Kishan 
  2. Yashasvi Jaiswal
  3. Sai Sudharshan
  4. Tilak Varma
  5. Rishabh Pant 
  6. Rinku Singh
  7. Axar Patel
  8. Kuldeep Yadav
  9. Arshdeep Singh
  10. Mohsin Khan 
  11. Khaleel Ahmed


Bench: Nitish Rana, Chetan Sakariyan, Shivam Dube and Abhishek Sharma.

Travelling reserves: Mukesh Choudhary, Shahbaz Ahmed, Nihal Wadhera, Devdutt Padikkal and Mahipal Lomror.