NEWS
Follow UsIndia’s Test captain Rohit Sharma has strongly hinted that KL Rahul will be playing ahead of Sarfaraz Khan in the forthcoming two-match Test series against Bangladesh, starting on September 19 in Chennai.
Rahul featured in the opening Test of the five-match series against England in January and registered scores of 86 and 22. The 32-year-old, however, sustained a quadriceps injury and was ruled out of the remaining four Tests. In his absence, Sarfaraz featured in three of the four Tests and smashed 200 runs at an average of 50 and a strike rate of close to 80.
Rahul is now back and even featured in the first round of the Duleep Trophy, scoring 37 and 57 for India. The right-handed middle-order batter is almost certain to feature in India's XI when they travel to Australia later this year, and Rohit wants him to play all matches.
“With KL we know what his calibre is. There are only a handful of cricketers who have had a smooth ride since cricket came into existence. Everyone has had an up and down,” Rohit told reporters in Chennai on September 17 (Tuesday).
“The message to KL is clear: We want him to play all matches and that’s what we have done. He has played a great knock in South Africa and got 80 against England. It is there for us to see that the guy has got talent.
“I hope he continues from where he left in Hyderabad. I don’t see any reason why he can’t flourish in Test cricket. Opportunities are there. Important for him to understand how he wants to take his career forward.
“It is important we give him the right messages and hopefully he continues to play well. He has the game against spinners and pacers as well which can help him flourish in Tests.”
Considering Rahul is set to feature in the opening Test, India’s batting order looks sorted. Rohit and Yashasvi Jaiswal will open, with Shubman Gill taking the No.3 spot. Virat Kohli, Rahul, Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja will take the next four spots. Axar Patel and R Ashwin are also more than handy with the bat in these conditions.
“Some things are straightforward; you don’t have to think too much. When we select an XI, we look at what people have done in the past, runs, wickets, experience an individual brings to the table, impact a player can have. We discuss based on what we feel is right in terms of individual player,” said Rohit.
“Some things are right in front of you. When we played the last series in India, a lot of players were injured and unavailable, and they missed it due to various reasons. There are injuries; few players are at NCA, but the majority of them are here. We’ve got to pick an XI based on how we want to play and which gives us a best chance to win the Test.”
If you’ve not downloaded the Cricket.com app yet, you’re missing out on our content — big time. Download the App here.
