India cricket report card: How they rated in England, and who should be picked for Australia tour

We rate the 20-strong squad for the five-match Test series against England, and decide who should make trip play down under at the turn of the year

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  Lokesh Rahul: 5/10 – punched ticket to Australia. Chose the most inopportune time to return to form – in the last innings of the final Test, by which time the series had been done and dusted. Nonetheless, the fact he has hundreds in Australia and now in England, and the fact he has hundreds in all three formats of the game, prove he is one to be persisted with – at least for another year. Give him another chance to prove his mettle in Australia. AFP

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  Murali Vijay: 2/10 – on stand-by, for now. Failed miserably in the two Tests he played in England, including returning from Lord’s with a pair of noughts. Yet, he is a class act with the bat – technically astute and easy on the eye when he is in form. His experience will come in handy down under, but first track his form in the county games and the Indian domestic circuit before deciding whether to pick him or not. AFP

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  Shikhar Dhawan: 2/10 – will miss the flight. For the past five years, the left-handed opener has been tried and tested, but done just about OK. He has tended to fare well in home conditions but flop overseas. Given he is already 33 and doing well in limited-overs cricket, it is best for the selectors to let him focus on the shorter formats. Reuters

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  Prithvi Shaw: unrated – on stand-by, for now. He was picked midway through the series but not given a game. Shaw has been earmarked as the opening batsman for the future after leading the Under 19 team to victory in the World Cup recently. He should be picked as the back-up opener and, perhaps, even given a Test cap if either Vijay or Rahul fail. Getty Images

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  Cheteshwar Pujara: 4/10 – on stand-by, for now. His county stint was considered largely a failure, and he was even overlooked for the first Test at Edgbaston. But he showed signs of form at Trent Bridge with a well-compiled fifty, before scoring a brilliant hundred in the next game at Southampton. He should have done better with the chances he got, but he should make the Australia trip regardless, because of his experience and good technique. Getty Images

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  Virat Kohli: 8/10 – punched ticket to Australia. His tally of 593 runs puts him head and shoulders over all the other batsmen in the series. He was more often than not the lone ranger for India, rescuing his side at Edgbaston and Trent Bridge. His form tailed off towards the end of the series, and his rating would have been even higher had he led his side to victory. Getty Images

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  Ajinkya Rahane: 4/10 – on stand-by, for now. The vice-captain played a full series abroad after a long time, but he was not at his best – save for his performances at Trent Bridge and, to some extent, in Southampton. He needs to take more responsibility in India's middle order. He should be picked to play in Australia considering he has fared well over there, scoring a brilliant hundred at Melbourne in 2014/15. If he fails down under, then perhaps it is time to find a long-term replacement for him. Getty Images

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  Hanuma Vihari: 6/10 – punched ticket to Australia. The youngster had only the one game he could showcase his talent in. But he made use of the opportunity by scoring a fifty on debut, in the process becoming the first Indian batsman since Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid in 1996 to go past the 50-run mark in his first Test innings on English soil. He also bowled decent off-breaks, taking wickets off consecutive deliveries. AFP

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  Karun Nair: unrated – on stand-by, for now. He was extremely unfortunate to not get a game in England. In fact, the team management was criticised for ignoring him in favour of Vihari in the final Test. He must certainly not be forgotten, not after scoring a triple-century against England on Indian soil in 2016. He can still make a contribution to the team, especially given that India have problems in the middle order and might need a long-term solution. TGSPhoto/REX/Shutterstock

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  Hardik Pandya: 5/10 – on stand-by, for now. He had his moments during the series, taking a five-wicket haul and scoring a fifty in Trent Bridge. But he was largely a liability in the side, given that he was denying a proper batsman a place in the XI, while his bowling was surplus to requirements. But he should make the squad, because he has the potential to develop into a brilliant all-rounder for India. Getty Images

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  Rishabh Pant: 6/10 – punched ticket to Australia. The youngster showed why he has been earmarked for greatness, becoming the first Indian wicketkeeper to score a Test hundred in England. His keeping, though, was far from spectacular in the three matches he played. This makes him both an asset and a liability. He should play in Australia, at least purely as a batsman and back-up keeper. Reuters

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  Dinesh Karthik: 1/10 – will miss the flight. He is another player who has failed to convince the selectors about his Test class – 14 years after making his international debut. Now that he has fared poorly in the two Tests he played in, it is time to end this experiment and get a younger – and proper – keeper-batsman in the Test team. AP Photo

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  Ravichandran Ashwin: 6/10 – punched ticket to Australia. The off-spinner began the series with a bang, taking four wickets. That he was not as prolific as the series progressed was down to the fact the seamers were taking the lion’s share of the wickets. He was disappointing in the must-win game at Southampton, but as was later discovered, it was because he was carrying an injury. That he batted so well at Lord’s, where the rest of the batsmen failed, continues to make him an all-round asset whatever the conditions and situations in front of him. AFP

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  Ravindra Jadeja: 6/10 – punched ticket to Australia. The slow left-armer played just the one Test – the dead rubber at The Oval – and having had little to lose, he bowled and batted with gay abandon. He took four wickets and scored an unbeaten 86 in the first innings, both efforts keeping India in the game. He was unable to sustain that form in the second innings, but his experience and overall brilliance in the field make him undroppable from the squad. AFP

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  Kuldeep Yadav: 2/10 – on stand-by, for now. Was unlucky to fare as poorly as he did in the only Test he played in – at Lord’s. Unfortunate because until it started to rain, his left-arm leg-spin was seen as an asset on what was expected to be a turning wicket. But as fate would have it, the wet conditions took some teeth out of his bowling. He is one for the future, however, and his services might be required in helpful conditions in Sydney. REX / Shutterstock

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  Ishant Sharma: 8/10 – punched ticket to Australia. A county stint for India’s most experienced fast bowler proved helpful as he finished as the highest-wicket-taker for his country, claiming 18 victims. The manner in which he troubled all the England batsmen, especially the top order, shows he has come of age. He bowls an awkward line, hits the deck hard and extracts seam and bounce – much needed on Australian pitches. Reuters

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  Jasprit Bumrah: 8/10 – punched ticket to Australia. Another fast bowler who made good use of English conditions, taking 14 wickets in just three matches, the up and coming Bumrah has proved he is the one to watch in the years to come – if he can take good care of his body. Like Ishant, he hit the deck hard, although he bowled slightly fuller and, as a result extracted more zip, in England. He will be more than a handful for Australia’s batsmen. Reuters

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  Mohammed Shami: 8/10 – punched ticket to Australia. Along with Ishant and Bumrah, Shami completes the pace battery for India. One whose line and length are impeccable, the right-armer also relies on swinging the ball both ways. It made his bowling difficult for the England batsmen to read. He was unlucky not to get more than the 16 wickets he took across five matches. AFP

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  Umesh Yadav: 3/10 – on stand-by, for now. He took three wickets at Edgbaston before being overlooked for the rest of the series, which turned out to be a good decision as India's front-line seamers proved heroes. But Umesh bowls fast and extracts plenty of bounce, which makes him a potential threat in Australian conditions where he has done well in the past. He will, at least, make a good back-up seamer. AFP

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  Bhuvneshwar Kumar: unrated – on stand-by, for now. Unlucky not to feature in the series due to an injury, Bhuvneshwar, however, is the best seam bowler in the country and may yet prove outstanding in Australian conditions. Keep track of his fitness, though, and pick him if he ticks that box. AFP

There is little doubt the tour of England will have left India's cricketers feeling bruised following their 4-1 defeat in the just-concluded five-match Test series.

Only two five-day matches, against West Indies at home, have yet been scheduled before Virat Kohli and his men embark on a four-Test tour of Australia at the turn of the year. Therefore, it makes sense to rate the captain and his teammates based on their individual performances in Old Blighty, to see who should make the flight down under.

That being said, some players did not get a chance to showcase their talents in the series, and we look at whether they deserve a look-in taking into consideration the conditions prevalent in Australia.

Take a look at the slideshow above to see the ratings.

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