India players lend boost to Vijay Hazare Trophy

When MS Dhoni last played for Jharkhand, he was less than three years into his international career. India had played a grand sum of one Twenty20 International and Greg Chappell had just resigned as coach following India's dismal 2007 World Cup. The inaugural edition of the World T20 was five months away, and the IPL was still a year into the future.

Dhoni was a carefree cricketer with long locks, brown streaks and a belligerent batting style that made him extremely popular. The 'Captain Cool' salutations were works of imagination, for the leadership mantle was firmly with Rahul Dravid. But two World titles, 90 Tests and a surprisingly early retirement from the longest format later, Dhoni is back to play for his state for at least the first half of the 2015-16 Vijay Hazare Trophy that begins across the country on Thursday.

While he may be in his last lap as an international cricketer, Dhoni's intent and attention to detail while training at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore were indication of his focus. He won't lead Jharkhand - Varun Aaron has been named captain owing to his familiarity with the squad - but Dhoni's presence, alongside a host of other India internationals in R Ashwin, Suresh Raina, Harbhajan Singh, Yuvraj Singh, Ishant Sharma, KL Rahul, Stuart Binny, Gautam Gambhir and Shikhar Dhawan among others will raise the profile of the tournament that has largely been an afterthought in India's cricket calendar.

BCCI's flagship 50-over tournament which has often slotted in at the end of the domestic season has been advanced over the last two years to help the young aspirants pitch for higher honours. The timing is significant, more so this year, given India's cricket calendar is brimming with limited-overs matches leading into the World T20 in March-April.

India's T20 batting needs a rejig and team director Ravi Shastri had hinted the door was open for anyone who made a strong case for themselves in the domestic one-day competitions. "It's a work in progress. We have not played T20s. There's a long way to go," he had said in October. "(With) six months to go, form will be crucial. There's a plenty of one-day cricket coming up - whole of December till January will be watched closely. We have some T20Is in Australia and then Sri Lanka are coming to India. There's the Asia Cup. A lot of T20 cricket (is) being played. It's a great opportunity to throw the hat into the ring, it could be young or old or anybody."

Among them will be Bengal's Mohammed Shami. The 25-year old fast bowler has recovered from knee surgery and is set to play his first game of competitive cricket since the 2015 World Cup, when he was India's second-highest wicket-taker. Suresh Raina, who had only one fifty in five ODIs against South Africa, went back to the Ranji Trophy and hit form. The Vijay Hazare Trophy is another opportunity for him to bid for a place when India tour Australia in January. Ravindra Jadeja's return to form also means the allrounder's spot becomes a three-way fight between him, Axar Patel and Binny.

The tournament is also a platform for the fringe players to showcase their talent. Among them are Gurkeerat Singh, who was picked for the senior team after three half-centuries and a five-wicket haul for India A and a double-ton in the Ranji Trophy for Punjab, Shreyas Iyer, the highest run-getter in this year's Ranji Trophy and Mayank Agarwal, who hammered 176 against South Africa A in August.

Unlike previous editions, this is the first time the tournament will move out of its zonal qualification. The 27 sides have been divided into three groups of seven and one group of six, with the top two from each qualifying for the knockouts. This system allows teams to play each other irrespective of the zones they are from whereas in the past, teams were restricted to playing opponents from the same zone, leading to a touch of predictability.

While many of India's top players could make a quick exit should the series against Pakistan see light, the fact that the tournament has been penciled in to give more opportunities to youngsters signals sound intent. All eyes then will be on the selectors as teams will play across multiple venues in Bangalore, Rajkot, Hyderabad and Delhi to earn the right to be crowned as India's best 50-overs side.