Gagan Khoda

Full name Gagan Kishanlal Khoda

Born October 24, 1974, Barmer, Rajasthan

Current age 35 years 311 days

Major teams India, Rajasthan, Rajasthan Cricket Association President's XI

Playing role Batsman

Batting style Right-hand batGagan Khoda, a right-hand opening batsman from Rajasthan, enjoyed an outstanding junior career before making a century on debut in the Ranji Trophy in 1991-92. A score of 237 in the Ranji quarter-final in 1994-95 further established him as a promising youngster. He represented India in two one-day internationals and scored a wonderful 89 against Kenya. He scored 26 in the other match. He was probably the best of the new openers which India had tried out. He also played in the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Malaysia, without much impact.

M. S. K. Prasad

Full name Mannava Sri Kanth Prasad

Born April 24, 1975, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh

Current age 35 years 129 days

Major teams India, Andhra

Batting style Right-hand bat

Fielding position WicketkeepeIt is never easy to force yourself into the Indian team when playing for one of the weaker state sides in the country and it is to MSK Prasad's credit that after coming through the ranks, he made it to the national squad on merit. The dapper cricketer from Guntur was interested in keeping wickets from a very early age and working himself up from state juniors to the Ranji Trophy squad, Prasad made the India A team. He first came into National reckoning on the India A tour of Pakistan in 1997-98 and coach K Srikkanth spoke highly of his capabilities. All the time he was improving with the bat and before the season was out he had made his international debut for the senior squad in one day games.

The injury to Nayan Mongia, following the 1999 World Cup gave Prasad his big chance and he grabbed it with both gloves. In the 1999-2000 season he played in six Tests, three against New Zealand at home and three in Australia, acquiting himself creditably, besides playing in many ODI's. He was preferred to Mongia even after the latter was fit. Following the Australian tour however he was dropped after averaging just over eight with the bat. He played seven more seasons for Andhra in the Ranji Trophy, and captained in side in his final season, before deciding to call it quits.

The 2002-03 season was his best as he scored 754 runs, including two hundreds and five half-centuries, and effected 32 dismissals from 11 matches - it was the only time in his career.

Parthiv Patel

Full name Parthiv Ajay Patel

Born March 9, 1985, Ahmedabad, Gujarat

Current age 25 years 175 days

Major teams India, Chennai Super Kings, Gujarat, India Green, Rajasthan Cricket Association President's XI

Batting style Left-hand bat

Fielding position WicketkeeperSmall even for his tender age, when Parthiv Pateed his side onto the stage during the Wisden Indian Cricketer of the Century Awards in London in July 2002, some people assumed he was the team mascot. But within a month he had instead become Test cricket's youngest wicketkeeper - at 17 years, 153 days - when called up to replace the injured Ajay Ratra for the second Test at Trent Bridge. And he didn't do too badly either, scoring a gutsy, unbeaten 19 which helped stave off an Indian defeat. Parthivl's glovework has varied from the competent to the shoddy - he was splendid in the home series against West Indies in 2002-03, but then struggled to inspire confidence thereafter, especially when standing up to the spinners. His ability with the bat ensured that he got an extended run - he scored an aggressive 62 at Sydney in 2003-04, and then faced up to Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Sami with plenty of poise, scoring 69 as an opener. However, those batting performances weren't enough to gloss over increasingly sloppy work behind the stumps, and the selectors' patience finally ran out after the third Test of the home series against Australia, when he was replaced by Dinesh Karthik. Parthiv's form took a turn for the better in 2007, on a twin tour of Zimbabwe and Harare for India A, where he hit three hundreds and a half-century. In the first match of a series against South Africa A at home Parthiv opened up with a fourth century on the trot.

Munaf Patel

Munaf Musa Patel pronunciation (born 12 July 1983, Ikhar, Gujarat, India) is an Indian cricketer who has also played for the West Zone in the Duleep Trophy and Gujarat, Mumbai cricket team and Maharashtra cricket team.

Born to a family which was opposed to cricket, Patel first gained prominence in 2003 at the age of 20 before he had even played first class cricket for Gujarat, when he was invited to the MRF Pace Foundation in Chennai by the Indian chairman of selectors Kiran More. There he attracted the attention of visiting Australian captain Steve Waugh, and the director Dennis Lillee, a former Australian fast bowler with his raw pace. However, with the backing of Sachin Tendulkar, he was captured by Mumbai in a transfer deal, in late 2003, without ever representing his native Gujarat.

In 2004, he struggled with injuries, and was criticized by India A coach Sandeep Patil, who believed that he had a mental problem dealing with his injuries. He was also sent to Australian Institute of Sport for bio-mechanical analysis on his bowling action, to improve its efficiency. In August 2005, he transferred to Maharashtra, and after taking 10 wickets against England in a tour match for the Board President's XI, he was rewarded with his selection in the Indian Test Squad for the 2nd Test against England in Mohali, when he made his Test debut.

Patel recorded the figures of 7/97 on debut, including an impressive 4/25 in the second innings and demonstrated an ability to swing the ball in both directions.

In the 2005-2006 Test Series against West Indies, Munaf proved he was arguably the fastest bowler in India, bowling regularly at speeds of over 87 mph and has produced balls at a pace over the 90 mph mark. However, more impressive than his ability to bowl at a very quick pace has been his control, a skill lacking in recent Indian fast bowlers. In the West Indies, however, Munaf suffered the ignominy of being hit for 6 fours in an over by Ramnaresh Sarwan. Patel fell short of the record of conceding the most runs off an over by 4 runs

Patel bowling in the nets.

In the second match of the DLF Cup in Malaysia, Munaf came up with impressive figures of 3/54 against Australia, picking up the wickets of Phil Jacques, Michael Clarke and Stuart Clark. In the final game of the same tournament, he dismissed Australian captain Ricky Ponting for just 4, on the way to 1/32 off 9 overs.

In the first match of the 2006 ICC Champions Trophy against England, Munaf Patel again produced impressive figures of 3/18 - winning the match for India and gaining the man of the match award.

He was part of the Indian 2007 Cricket World Cup squad which failed to progress from the group stage and played during India's One-day International series against Bangladesh shortly after the tournament before playing 2 games in England in August 2007. He took four wickets before being ruled out of the remainder of the series through injury. He was subsequently left out of the squad to play Pakistan in November although was recalled to the Test squad following injuries to R. P. Singh and S. Sreesanth.

He was selected for the 2009 tour to Sri Lanka and played in the opening match. He bowled five wicketless overs for 32 runs. He then picked up a groin injury before the second match and was replaced in the squad by Lakshmipathy Balaji.

Ashok Omprakash Malhotra

Full name Ashok Omprakash Malhotra

Born January 26, 1957, Amritsar, Punjab

Current age 53 years 214 days

Major teams India, Bengal, Haryana

Batting style Right-hand bat

Bowling style Right-arm mediumAn attractive right-hand middle-order batsman cast in the GR Viswanath mould, the stockily built Ashok Malhotra never really did justice to his talent in Test cricket and his overall figures are disappointing. Picked to play for the country on the basis of some excellent . toured West Indies in 1983 without making the Test team. Back in the squad against West Indies at home in 1983-84, Malhotra fared better with scores of 32, 72*, 20 and 30 (top score in a total of 90). He was then dropped again before returning to play in one Test against England in 1984-85. He was a member of the Indian team that won the World Championship of Cricket in Australia in 1985.

In domestic cricket however Malhotra was a prolific run getter and for a long time he held the record of most runs in the Ranji Trophy - 7274 at 52.49 with 18 hundreds. His highest score was 258 not out for Bengal against Hyderabad in 1989-90. Later he became a Test selector.