KL Rahul; IND vs ENG: Veteran Indian cricketer KL Rahul, who did wicketkeeping for the first time in a Test series during India’s tour of South Africa, has reportedly been relieved of the responsibility. Although Rahul has impressed many with his skills behind the stumps, he will reportedly not be used as a wicket-keeper batsman in the 5-match Test series between India and England. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) selection committee and team management are considering specialist wicketkeeper KS Bharat to fulfill that role for the team in the upcoming assignments.
As soon as the BCCI announced the squad for the first two Test matches against England, KS Bharat and Dhruv Jurel were selected for the role of wicketkeeper, after which they were included in the Test squad for the first time. According to a report in Times of India, the BCCI does not feel that Rahul would be right for the role of wicketkeeper on spin-friendly home pitches, hence, they have chosen two experts for the task.
“Rahul will play as a specialist batsman from now on, whereas in overseas Tests you just have to stand up to the fast bowlers, wicketkeeping is not easy in India where the spinners work together. The ball bounces or spins quickly. Home wickets may be spin-friendly and you will have to be up and down as a keeper. We want a specialist in that role.
“On the other hand, Rahul (BCCI on KL Rahul) is one of our most valuable batting assets. We don’t want to unsettle him by making him do glovework. There is also a possibility of him getting injured while standing behind the stumps.” , which we cannot tolerate. Bharat (KS Bharat) and Jurel (Dhruv Jurel Replace KL Rahul as Wicket Keeper) will be our wicketkeepers in this series. “Jurel is a talented keeper-batsman. We have been keeping an eye on the 22-year-old since he was playing for India in the Under-19 team,” TOI quoted a source as saying.
Earlier, a report in the Indian Express had also confirmed BCCI’s intention to play Rahul only as a specialist batsman in the England Test series. “The Indian team will once again play on a turner track and the team management felt that specialist spinners should handle the job on home soil. The team has many quality spinners and the team will not take any risks, especially when the pitch is bad,” said a BCCI source. “The offering will be Turner,” he told the newspaper.