Despite his poor performance in the recent few Tests, KL Rahul has gotten the backing of Parthiv Patel. Patel stated that he would pick KL Rahul over Sarfaraz Khan in case Shubman Gill comes back into India XI for the second Test against New Zealand, to be played in Pune from October 24 onwards.
KL Rahul had managed just 0 and 12 in two innings of the first Test that was played in his home of Bengaluru. On the other hand, Sarfaraz Khan made 0 and 150 and almost took India to a formidable total in the second innings.
New Zealand shocked India in the first Test in Bengaluru, winning in India for the first time in 36 years. It all started with a miscalculation by India skipper Rohit Sharma, who won the toss and decided to bat first despite the rain and cloudy conditions.
India was thrashed for 46 in their first innings after skipper Rohit Sharma erred by winning the toss and opting to bat first on day two after day one was washed out by rain. Matt Henry, with five wickets, and Will O’Rourke, with four, ripped through Indian batting. KL Rahul made a duck in the first innings.
In response, Devon Conway (91), Rachin Ravindra (134), and Tim Southee (65) helped New Zealand score 402. In the second innings, India scored 462 runs, with 150 from Sarfaraz Khan and 99 from Rishabh Pant. Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma also struck 50s. KL Rahul made 12 runs in the second innings.
With 107 runs to win, New Zealand completed the mark with 8 wickets in hand, their first Test victory in India since 1988.
Parthiv Patel wants India to play KL Rahul ahead of Sarfaraz Khan in the second Test against New Zealand if Shubman Gill is back in the XI. Gill was observed doing a net session after the game, so Patel believes he will be eligible for the second Test. He voted for Rahul over Sarfaraz in the likely second Test pairing.
“The question will be whether Sarfaraz Khan will get to play or they will go with KL Rahul. I will still play KL Rahul, the way the team has shown faith in him. I am thinking like that based on how the team’s thinking has been. If you wanted, you could have made Rahul bat at No. 3 in this Test match but you said that you didn’t want to change his position. Nothing to take from Sarfaraz’s knock, he made 150 runs for sure, but it’s the same situation as Mohammed Siraj or Akash Deep. There will definitely be pressure on KL Rahul but I would still play him,” Patel stated in Colors Cineplex.
The former India wicketkeeper-batter added that Rahul would have been made to bat at No. 3 in the Bengaluru Test if his spot at No. 6 wasn’t secure.
KL Rahul might survive: Ajay Jadeja
During the same discussion, Ajay Jadeja stated that KL Rahul will only be left out if Mohammed Siraj is also requested to make way for Akash Deep.
While noting that India may choose to go a bowler short to accommodate both Rahul and Sarfaraz, the cricketer-turned-commentator also stated that the former will most likely keep his position, with Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli batting at Nos. 3 and No. 4.
“I am with him. I am seeing it in such a way that the player who was rested was a No. 3 batter. The guy you played in this match, you played him by removing Virat Kohli from No. 4. If you leave out Siraj, you will leave out KL Rahul as well. I think both of them are in a similar situation.
In fact, Rahul might be above Siraj in terms of designation. If anyone will be left, both will be. However, there is another option as well. You can go towards four bowlers and add another batter. That’s difficult. Since Virat Kohli played at No. 3, I feel Gill will come back, Kohli will go back to his place and KL Rahul might survive,” Jadeja elaborated.
The second Test between India and New Zealand will be played in Pune from October 24.
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