KL Rahul Relieved From Wicket-Keeper's Role For England Tests: Report

14.01.2024 - 04:47 sports.ndtv.com

Veteran Indian cricketer KL Rahul, who kept wickets for the first time in a Test series during India's tour of South Africa, has reportedly been relieved from the responsibility.

Though Rahul impressed many with his skills behind the stumps, he will reportedly not be used as a wicket-keeper batter in the 5-match Test series between India and England.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) selection committee and the team management are looking at specialist wicket-keeper KS Bharat to fulfill that role for the team in the upcoming assignment.

As the BCCI announced the squad for the first two Tests against England, KS Bharat and Dhruv Jurel were picked for the wicket-keeper's role, with the latter earning his maiden Test call-up.

cricket India Cricket Team England Cricket Team India vs England 2024 Kl Rahul South Africa India

Indian cricket team star KL Rahul backed teammate Shubman Gill to score big after he was dismissed cheaply on Day 2 of the first Test match against England on Friday. Gill looked to score quickly but ended up gifting his wicket to Tom Hartley after scoring just 23 runs. However, Rahul pointed out that Gill is a top-class cricketer who can play spin well and said that this is something that can happen to any batter. With Yashasvi Jaiswal opening with Rohit Sharma, Gill has been given the No. 3 batting slot but his performance in the new position has not been satisfactory in the past few matches.

India vs England, 1st Test: Ravindra Jadeja, KL Rahul Shine On Day 2 As Hosts Push England To Corner

Ravindra Jadeja's two-layered fifty and KL Rahul's mastery were at the heart of India's 421 for seven, a total which placed them several miles ahead of England after the second day's play of the first Test in Hyderabad on Friday. Jadeja (81 batting) and Axar Patel (35 batting), who added 63 runs for the unbroken eighth-wicket stand, are at the crease at stumps. India's lead has now swelled to 175 runs, and England would find it tough to wipe that out once their turn to bat come on third day.

India vs England: KL Rahul Will Not Play As Wicketkeeper Against England, Says Rahul Dravid

India head coach Rahul Dravid on Tuesday said KL Rahul will not be keeping wickets in the five-match Test series against England, and it will be a toss up between KS Bharat and Dhruv Jurel for the wicketkeeper-batter role. Rahul had kept wickets in the two-match series against South Africa recently, and produced a rather nimble effort behind the stumps. The series against England starts here on Thursday.

"If He Wants To Play World Cup...": Ex-India Star's Advice For KL Rahul

With the clean sweep against Afghanistan in the recently-concluded T20I series, Team India started their preparations for the upcoming T20 World Cup on a positive note. The series marked the return of India skipper Rohit Sharma and star batter Virat Kohli in the T20I format after a gap of 14 months. It is highly likely that both the players will feature in India's squad at the marquee event. However, there are doubts over the selection of wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul.

"You Cannot Sign Him Off": Ex-India Star Prefers Sanju Samson Over KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant

Former India star Suresh Raina backed Sanju Samson as his leading choice for the wicketkeeper-batter role and called the Kerala player the X-Factor. It is worth noting that Samson and Jitesh Sharma have been included as wicketkeeper-batters in India's squad for three-match T20I series against Afghanistan. Ishan Kishan is not a part of the series as he has asked for rest. Meanwhile, the team management has given no clarity on the absence of KL Rahul, who has cemented his place as wicketkeeper-batter in ODI cricket.

Ishan Kishan In Fray For England Tests, Says Report. KL Rahul's Role Changes To ...

There has been a lot of speculation surrounding Ishan Kishan recently with some media reports claiming that the wicket-keeper batter was dropped for the Afghanistan T20I series due to 'mistrust' between him and the Indian cricket team selectors. Kishan opted out of the South Africa Test series citing 'personal reasons' and has not featured for the national side since then. However, according to Cricbuzz, he is likely to make his return to international cricket during the upcoming Test series against England as the team management may opt for a specialist wicket-keeper in place of KL Rahul.