10 players from T20 World Cup 2021 who may not feature in the 2022 edition

The Super 12 of the T20 World Cup 2021 came to an end and the teams England, Australia, Pakistan, and New Zealand made it to the semi-finals. After the semis, only two teams- New Zealand and Australia – remain in contention to bag the title.

Some players and teams have performed well, while some other players have not performed to their expectations. Some great players are expected to bid adieu to the game after this tournament while some have already announced their retirement.

This World Cup might be the last stint for some players if they retire and some players may not get a chance to play the T20 WC tournament, which is set to get underway in 2022, due to their form.

Here is the list of players who played this 2021 T20 WC but may not play the next edition in 2022 in Australia:

1. Chris Gayle

Chris Gayle is the ambassador of the T20 format. He has been a role model for the players who wanted to be an explosive batter like him. His ability to clear the ropes without moving his feet and the way he makes batting look so easy is astonishing.

He is one of the six players to play in this tournament right from the inaugural season. He is the second-highest run-getter in T20 World Cups and was West Indies’ key player in their World Cup-winning campaigns in 2012 and 2016. However, this season was not his favourite.

This 42-year-old player is the oldest in the tournament. In West Indies’ last league match against Australia, he received a guard of honour which made the fans think that they are witnessing the ‘Universe Boss’ for one last time in maroon. But he denied the talks about his retirement but yet this might be the last stint for this legend in a T20 World Cup.

2. Mohammad Hafeez

Mohammad Hafeez is a versatile Pakistani all-rounder who can bat anywhere in the batting line-up and is capable of bowling some handy overs too. He has also captained the T20 World Cup squad of Pakistan.

His form has dipped of late and he is not so effective as how he was in the early years. But Pakistan’s performance in this T20 World Cup has been splendid and probably they would be the favourites to lift the cup.

This 41 year-old-player may leave the way for the youngsters in the squad. He might have decided to retire from this sport after finishing this tournament on a high note and hence, most probably he won’t be wearing the greens in the next T20 World Cup.

3. Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Bhuvneshwar Kumar is a right-arm-medium pace bowler, who can swing the ball well in both directions. He is largely known for the swing that he produces but he is a condition-specific bowler and if the conditions doesn’t favour him, he won’t be much difficult for the batters.

He usually takes wickets in the powerplay overs which breaks the momentum of the opposition but now the players have learned to manage his swinging deliveries as his pace is not so fast and he has failed to pick early wickets.

This 31 year-old-player just played a match in this T20 World Cup against Pakistan and bowled 3 overs conceding 25 runs and finished wicketless. His ability has faded and there are fresh bowlers like Deepak Chahar who can replace him in the future for the next edition of the T20 World Cup.

4. Shoaib Malik

Shoaib Malik is a veteran of Pakistan’s cricket team. He has been playing this T20 format since 2006. He retired from Test cricket and One Day Internationals and now plays only the shortest format of the game.

Malik was confident to play in the T20 World Cup 2021 but was not included in the preliminary list of the squad of Pakistan. But after the injury of their all-rounder Sohaib Maqsood, Malik was roped in as a replacement in the squad.

He proved his worth very well by hitting a few match-winning knocks and he scripted his name in the record books for hitting the fastest half-century in 18 balls for Pakistan in a T20 World Cup. However, he is aged 39 and this might be his last appearance for Pakistan in T20 World Cup.

5. Ravi Rampaul

Ravi Rampaul, the right-arm-fast-medium bowler, was a surprise pick in the T20 World cup squad of West Indies. He debuted in the T20I squad in 2007 against England. But has not been consistent in the squad due to his injuries.

He was a key player of the 2012 T20 World Cup-winning team. He played his last T20I match in 2015 after which he has come back to the squad after emerging as the best seamer in 2021’s Caribbean Premier League.

This 37-year-old bowler was not as impressive in this tournament as the way he performed in the CPL. He played 4 matches and managed to take only a couple of wickets. Considering his age and his performance after his comeback, this might be his last T20 World Cup.

6. Sarfaraz Ahmed

Sarfaraz Ahmed is the former skipper of the Pakistan cricket team in all the three formats. He is a right-handed-wicketkeeper batter. He debuted in T20I in 2010 and has played 60 matches, scoring 812 runs with a strike rate of 126.68.

His captaincy led the team to lift the ICC Champions Trophy in 2017 against their foe India. After the team’s poor run, his captaincy was stripped off and was handed over to Babar Azam. He was removed from the team and the fitter Mohammad Rizwan was made the keeper.

Sarfaraz was named in the T20 World Cup squad and he was not given a chance to play. Rizwan, as a keeper, held his position tight by his splendid performances. This 34-year-old player might not get a chance to be in the next edition of the T20 World Cup considering the mighty youth contenders.

7. Tymal Mills

Tymal Mills is an explosive fast-bowler of the England cricket team. He bowls some swift deliveries and is clever in making variations. Despite having good skills, he has been a very unlucky bowler as he is prone to injuries.

Mills played his debut T20I match in 2016 against Sri Lanka but has managed to play just 9 matches after that because of his injuries. But in those 9 matches, he took 10 wickets with an economical economy of 7.29. He was rewarded with the T20 World Cup call this time in replacement of their express pace bowler Jofra Archer.

He cemented his spot in the 11 after getting 2 and 3 wickets against West Indies and Bangladesh respectively. But in his next game against Australia, he was expensive and against Sri Lanka, he sustained an injury again and was ruled out of the tournament. He has not been the team’s main bowler and considering the availability of the other key bowlers for the next World Cup, he may not feature there.

8. Dinesh Chandimal

Dinesh Chandimal is a Sri Lankan wicket-keeping batter. He debuted for the team in 2010 against New Zealand. Since then, he has played 61 T20I matches and has scored 950 runs with an average of just 19.79 and a strike rate of 104.51.

He has not always been so impressive in the shortest format of the game. Dinesh was picked in the T20 World Cup squad and after his low scores in the qualifying matches against Namibia and Ireland, he was replaced by Charith Asalanka who turned out to be the sensation of the team.

This 31-year-old-player has lost his charm and the youngsters who, replaced him, proved their abilities. His poor form in the qualifying matches and the youngster’s good form made him warm the bench for the rest of the tournament.

9. Mushfiqur Rahim

Mushfiqur Rahim is a Bangladeshi veteran wicker-keeper who is 34 years old. He has been representing the country since 2006 and has played 99 T20I matches scoring 1465 runs with an average of 19.53 and a strike rate of 115.26.

Rahim played the 2021 T20 World Cup and started the tournament decently by scoring a half-century against Sri Lanka, but later he failed to continue his good start. His strike rate was not good and later, he did not make an impact in the tournament.

His wicket-keeping allies Liton Das and Nurul Hasan are the next contenders of his position and the management would look to back these players ahead of the T20 World Cup in 2022.

10. Todd Astle

Todd Astle is a Kiwi bowling all-rounder. He is a leg-spinner and a handy hitter down the order. He debuted in the T20I side in 2016 against Pakistan and has managed to play just 4 games since then. He has not been a consistent player to be in the squad.

Astle got a call to represent the squad in T20 World Cup 2021 but was not given a chance to play in the eleven. He is 35 years old and is the oldest player in the squad.

Unlike his age, he has very little experience in the international cricket circuit. He might not play the next T20 World Cup as there are more youngsters in the contention.