Flamboyant wicketkeeper batter KL Rahul
Gautam Gambhir feels that KL Rahul has now cemented his position at number 4 position as a wicketkeeper batter.
Veteran opener Gautam Gambhir believes that flamboyant KL Rahul has fixed his place in India’s XI for the ODI World Cup as number 4 batter and wicketkeeper. Rahul made his comeback in the ongoing Asia Cup after recovering from a thigh injury that he sustained during IPL 2023. The wicketkeeper batter underwent surgery and missed competitive cricket for about 4 months but made a sensational return with a sublime century against Pakistan in the Super 4 clash of Asia Cup 2023. The 31-year-old also kept gloves for the team and did well behind the stumps and took a couple of sharp catches against Sri Lanka.
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Gambhir feels that Rahul has now cemented his position at number 4 position in the absence of Shreyas Iyer as the latter might return to the team at the number 5 position.
“The number five position is now open. Whether Shreyas Iyer comes into it, whether they play Suryakumar at seven and Hardik at five or Jadeja at five, now KL Rahul has secured that number four spot as a wicketkeeper-batsman. So, it is pretty much clear, which is good for Indian cricket that they have backed KL Rahul as a wicketkeeper now and who’s batting at number four. Before the game against Pakistan, he was not supposed to play that game, but came as a replacement and got that big hundred,” Gambhir said on Star Sports.
The 2011 World Cup-winning star was also impressed with Rahul’s work behind the stumps against the spinners and suggested he will be playing as a wicketkeeper in the ODI WC starting next month.
“He played good cricket and kept the wicket well against Jadeja and Kuldeep on a wicket that does grip. It is pretty much clear that KL Rahul is your wicketkeeper-batter going into the World Cup,” he added.
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Gambhir suggested that the team management has made it clear that Rahul will be playing over Kishan as the wicketkeeper batter in the Indian team for their opening match in the WC against Australia.
“I think the team management has made it very clear that it’s going to be KL Rahul who would be keeping in the World Cup because there was Ishan Kishan, and if Kishan was in the scheme of things of playing in the 11 against Australia, then he would have kept, wickets for India because he was the main wicket-keeper but now in the last two games KL Rahul has kept wicket,” the former India opener explained.
