New Delhi: Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir launched a fierce defence of under-fire batter KL Rahul in the pre-match conference ahead of the 2nd Test against New Zealand in Pune. India will be aiming to return to winning ways and level the series 1-1 when they lock horns with the Kiwis in the 2nd Test of the three-match series at the MCA Stadium in Pune on Thursday.
India suffered an 8-wicket defeat in the 1st Test in Bengaluru to go 1-0 down. Rahul’s poor form continued in the series opener as he was dismissed on a duck in India’s first innings before getting out cheaply on 12 runs in the hosts’ second innings. Rahul was slammed by many for his woeful show as India suffered another mini-collapse in their second innings to throw away the game from a strong position.
India were bowled out for 49 runs in their first innings but staged a fightback in their second innings. The hosts rode on Sarfaraz Khan’s brilliant 150 and Rishabh Pant’s 99 to comfortably overhaul New Zealand’s 356-run lead but failed to capitalise as the likes of Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja failed to deliver in the lower middle order. India posted 462 runs on the board in their second innings to set up a 107-run target for the visitors and lost the Test match by 8 wickets.
Despite calls for the team management to drop Rahul amid his poor form, Gambhir backed the star batter and said social media opinions do not matter in the dressing room. Gambhir defended Rahul and hinted that India are ready to give the batter a long rope at no.6 in Tests.
“Social media does not matter one bit. What the team management and leadership group thinks is very important. He is batting really well, had a decent knock in Kanpur (against Bangladesh) on a difficult wicket,” Gambhir told reporters when asked about Rahul’s place in the XI for the 2nd Test against New Zealand.
Rahul had played a 68-run knock in the 2nd Test against Bangladesh in Kanpur. The right-hander is viewed as India’s best contender for the no.6 spot heading into the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 against Australia later this year given his great record overseas. Gambhir insisted everyone is judged by performances at the highest level but said Rahul has the capability of scoring big runs.
“I am sure he would be knowing that he has to score big runs and he has capability of scoring runs. That’s why he has been backed by the team…Ultimately, everyone is judged. International cricket is all about being judged,” Gambhir added.
KL Rahul or Sarfaraz Khan in 2nd Test?
Sarfaraz Khan slammed his maiden Test century for India in the rain-affected Bengaluru Test against New Zealand. He went on to convert his ton into a 150-run knock, increasing the headache for the Indian team management. Sarfaraz had replaced injured Shubman Gill in the XI in the 1st Test but with the no.3 batter set to return in the 2nd Test in Pune, it remains to be seen if the Indian team management will continue backing Rahul or reward Sarfaraz for his impressive show.
With 350 runs in 4 Tests, Sarfaraz has capitalised on the limited opportunities he has gotten for India and has not put a foot wrong. The 26-year-old batter would hope to get the nod ahead of struggling Rahul at number six in the second Test against the Kiwis. However, the final decision will rest on the shoulders of head coach Gambhir and skipper Rohit Sharma.
Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir came out in defence of under-fire KL Rahul, backing the star batter to bounce back. Gambhir said opinions on social media doesn’t matter as long as the team management has decided to back Rahul. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
