“There are times you go with experienced players”, Gautam Gambhir stands behind KL Rahul despite questions on his spot in the Test team
KL Rahul has been facing a lot of criticisms owing to his underperformance in Test cricket, but coach Gautam Gambhir has backed him.
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KL Rahul, Gautam Gambhir (Via X)
Team India’s Head Coach, Gautam Gambhir, attended the press conference before departing for Australia for the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy. He fielded various questions, including those concerning the place of KL Rahul in the Indian Test team.
Gambhir fully backed Rahul’s inclusion in the squad for BGT and said that he can bat in various positions in the line-up. Rahul has been under intense pressure due to his under-performance with the bat.
He has been in the scheme of things for more than a decade but still hasn’t been able to cement his spot in the Test team. Rahul had been dropped from the squad after the first Test against New Zealand in Bengaluru and has been in the firing line. Gambhir, meanwhile, seems to have full confidence in the player.
There are times you go with experienced players as well. He (KL Rahul) can bat at the top, middle order and at No. 6 as well. He can keep wicket; can do the job for us if Rohit is not available for the 1st Test. We will try and get the best combination – be it KL, Gill or Easwaran.
Gautam Gambhir said at the press conference before leaving for Australia
India’s captain, Rohit Sharma, has not travelled with the team as he is set to miss the first Test against Australia in Perth due to personal reasons. It feels like Rahul will open the innings for the team in Perth, given that he was sent to Australia ahead of the series to play for India A and batted in the opening spot. However, he failed to perform there as well, and questions are being asked on his possible inclusion.
KL Rahul started his career as an opener but has been pushed to the middle-order off late
Rahul originally started his career batting as an opener. However, he has been pushed to the middle-order off late. The player may have cemented his position while batting in the middle-order in the ODIs, Rahul hasn’t been able to do that in Test cricket.
However, India’s captain had earlier stated that they have no intentions of changing the batting position of the Karnataka man.
Rahul has played 53 Test matches and 91 innings so far in Test cricket, where he has scored 2,981 runs at an average of 33.87. This comes from a tally of eight centuries and 15 half-centuries. Rahul, despite his potential and talent, hasn’t been able to score consistently in Test cricket for some time to earn his spot permanently in the squad.
Meanwhile, Shubman Gill also had started his career as an opener but has been slotted at number three after India moved on from Cheteshwar Pujara post the World Test Championship Final in 2023. Another potential candidate for the spot, Abhimanyu Easwaran, has scored heaps of runs while opening the innings in domestic cricket but has still not earned his Test debut.
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Rohit Sarkar
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