Indian wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul has been named as deputy for Indian skipper Rohit Sharma for the remainder of the ODI World Cup 2023 after Hardik Pandya was ruled out of the tournament due to an ankle injury.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) formally declared Hardik Pandya missing out on the remaining games on Saturday morning. The all-rounder, who was selected as vice-captain before the World Cup, got himself in the game against Bangladesh and missed out on the games. The senior selection committee selected KL Rahul to be Rohit Sharma’s deputy for the rest of the mega event.
According to the reports in the Indian Express, KL Rahul was formally informed about his role on Saturday by the BCCI selection committee chairman Ajit Agarkar regarding the BCCI decision to have him in the leadership position.
“The BCCI has appointed KL Rahul as the vice-captain of the Indian team for the remainder of the World Cup. He was informed about it on Saturday morning by the chairman of the selection committee, Ajit Agarkar, who is travelling with the team,” a BCCI official said.
Star all-rounder Hardik Pandya is ruled out of the ongoing ODI World Cup 2023 after failing to recover from the ankle injury that he sustained during the Bangladesh game and Indian speedster Prasidh Krishna has been named as his replacement for the remainder of the tournament.
KL Rahul will now be part of the team in all bowlers’ and batsmen’s meetings, replacing his role as specialised wicketkeeper, and the team management is expected to consult Rahul on all significant decisions going forward in the tournament.
KL Rahul has brought much-needed stability to the middle order alongside Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer in the ongoing mega event. The Karnataka batter made the most of the opportunity provided to him to announce his resounding comeback since the Asia Cup and would look to continue his fine form going into the business end of the marquee event.
With Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Jasprit Bumrah, and Kuldeep Yadav being leading performers for the Indian team in the World Cup, the Men in Blue are in a dominating position after winning seven of the seven games in the main event.
However, Pandya’s absence would be a major blow to the Indian team heading into the bigger matches in the mega event.