Numerous players have entered and exited Indian cricket, making their way onto the national team. However, after a few appearances, they were eventually overlooked by selectors and faded from view. There was one such player, who rubbed shoulders with the likes of Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly some 25 years back and after featuring in only two ODI matches, he never featured for the country again.
He is 52-year old Gyanendra Pandey, who after quitting cricket is currently working as a PR agent for the State Bank Of India (SBI).
As spinner and a skilled batsman, Pandey emerged as a key all-rounder for Uttar Pradesh in the Indian domestic scene, accumulating 254 wickets in 199 matches across First-Class and List A formats. Notably, in 1997 Ranji Trophy games, he amassed 4425 runs and claimed 148 wickets. Following two seasons of surpassing 400 runs, Pandey made his debut for India during the 1999 Pepsi Cup tri-series against Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
"In 1997, I had put up a good performance. In the Duleep Trophy final, I scored 44 runs and took three wickets. I had an extraordinary outing in the Deodhar Trophy. The North Zone featured Vikram Rathour, Virender Sehwag and Navjot Sidhu. I took five wickets and scored an unbeaten 23. Against West Zone, I scored 89 not out and took 2-3 wickets against East Zone. Against South Zone, scored 28 or 30 not out and 2-3 wickets," Pandey told The Lallantop about his memorable moments.
In that Tri-series, Virender Sehwag made his India debut and Pandey shared the dressing room with the likes of big names like Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly and Mohammed Azharuddin.
"In the Challenger Trophy, I dismissed Robin Singh and Amay Khurasiya. For India A, I took two wickets for 26 runs and then got an India call-up. That was in the year 1999'', he further added.
Pandey mentioned that a significant factor behind his removal from the national team was the lack of support and confidence from then-BCCI secretary, Jaywant Lele.
“Mr. Lele should have thought about what he said. He should have seen my performance. He was an umpire as well. I get it; it was my fault. I didn't know the tricks; didn't understand how these thing work. I couldn't handle it and hence, got defamed. Even the media did not print my side of the story. No one came to ask me anything. They only contacted the top brass'', he told.
After featuring in only two matches, he was overlooked by selectors and as a result he returned to represent Uttar Pradesh and continued playing there until 2006, when he decided to retire. As per official stats, he scalped 254 wickets from 199 games held in the First Class and List A cricket. In 2016, he received the Maati Ratan Samman from Shaheed Shodha Sansthan in recognition of his contributions to cricket.