Pietersen is the mentor of the Delhi Capitals (DC) and has been working closely with the wicketkeeper batter in IPL 2025.
Kevin Pietersen has backed KL Rahul to return to India’s T20I setup and play at No.4 in the T20 World Cup next year. Pietersen is the mentor of the Delhi Capitals (DC) and has been working closely with the wicketkeeper batter in IPL 2025.
According to him, Rahul has been batting well and should be India’s No.4 in the shortest format, explaining how the team already has several top-order batters. The DC mentor also wants Rahul to keep wickets for the Men in Blue in the T20 World Cup.
“I’d bat KL at four for India in T20 cricket, I think you guys have got plenty of opening batters, you’ve got Surya who bats at the top, you’ve got all of these guys but the way that KL Rahul is playing cricket now, he would be my first choice to bat at four and keep wicket for India.”
Unlike the previous seasons, Rahul has been batting in the middle order for the Delhi Capitals in IPL 2025 and has played a few quality knocks to help his team win. Hence, the talks to recall him into the T20I setup have again gained voice, especially since he also keeps the wickets.
KL Rahul has fallen behind in the pecking order in the shortest format after several mediocre IPL seasons and performances for India. The main reason to look beyond him was his tepid batting approach at a low strike rate, which is incompatible with modern-day high-scoring T20 games.
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However, he started this season on a high note, batting with good intent and taking more risks than he used to in previous seasons. But the last few games have not been ideal, for Rahul has reverted to his over-cautious approach and batted with low intent and strike rate.
Yes, the decks weren’t flat, but he could have still taken more risks and increased the run rate. For instance, he scored 41 runs in 39 deliveries against RCB last night, which proved to be a match-losing knock, and Tristan Stubbs showed that the surface is not as arduous as KL made it look.
Hence, Rahul must bat with more intent to make the selectors notice his performances. Doing it for a few games and reverting to that faulty method won’t work, especially after the rise of other wicketkeeper batters who bat at a higher strike rate and fit in India’s new attacking template.
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