With so many young talents vying for a spot on the Indian Playing XI, the former Indian coach believes KL Rahul really needs to fight if he wants to secure a spot on the team.
KL Rahul has been out of his element for some time. Indeed, the Indian batsman has performed well for half a century since returning to the Indian side from a groin injury, but he appears unconvincing and more importantly, he has performed well in the crunch game. It failed to make an impression. Long considered India’s first option, Rahul struggled against fourth-placed Bangladesh in the ODI. Rahul scored against Bangladesh for the first time in half a century, but ended in a loss. Additionally, with the return of Suryakumar Yadav and especially Ravindra Jadeja’s return to the middle tier, it remains important to see if Rahul fits into the starting XI.
Rahul’s place in India’s Playing XI at the World Cup looks questionable, says former batting coach Sanjay Banger, as the competition for opening spots is so fierce. Ishan Kishan’s recent 2nd century against Bangladesh promises to undermine Rahul’s chances.Besides Ishan, Shikar Dhawan, Ruthraj Gaikwad and Shubman Gil also appear. With so many promising young talents breathing down his neck, Banger said it will not be easy for Rahul to join India’s Playing XI when the World Cup reaches India later this year. I believe not. In 2022, the Indian team saw up to seven players as captain, including Rahul.Banger believes Rahul has dropped down the pecking order.Hardik Pandya has made the T20I team permanent in the absence of Rohit Sharma. It’s even harder for him to get a place on the team. Also, India has yet to lose a match under Pandya. As such, he has been approved by Bangal to replace Rohit as his next ODI and his T20I captain, and Rahul, who has been taken out of the Sri Lankan series, has overtaken the position fairly easily. .
“Hardik Pandya’s career charts as a captain are very good and the way he led the team to the IPL championship was fantastic. He will be a strong candidate to take the reins from Sharma,” added the former Indian batting coach.