KL Rahul has scored 3,257 runs in 58 Test matches so far.
Former India batting coach Sanjay Bangar has backed KL Rahul as Rohit Sharma’s successor in Test cricket. After Rohit’s sudden retirement from the longest format of the game, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is yet to announce a new captain.
Amidst this, Bangar has voiced for the formidable player Rahul to take up the leadership in Tests. The former batter emphasised his away match experience and good stats while describing why he could be the proper candidate to don the captain’s hat in the Indian whites.
“He’s been a proven test batter, a lot of important runs at the top of the order for India. So he would play all the Test matches, and most of his hundreds or big scores have come in overseas matches. So there is no question mark on his ability in any conditions, for that matter,” he said to ESPN Cricinfo.
He also discussed that the Karnataka batter will surely play the entire World Test Championship (WTC) cycle, which will kick off with India’s tour of England. The Karnataka batter is just 33 years old. So, BCCI can easily bank on him as the new Test skipper.
“He is young, he is not that old either. So when you are looking at a WTC cycle, it is a two-year cycle. I think Rahul at the moment is 31 or 32 [33]. He can clearly play the entire cycle,” he added.
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The former coach also recalled how Suryakumar Yadav replaced Hardik Pandya in India’s T20I captaincy, due to his injury issues. Similarly, India’s prime pacer Jasprit Bumrah could also miss out on the well-deserved captaincy, for better managing his workload in Tests.
“The yardstick which was taken for Hardik Pandya when Suryakumar was named T20I captain, the reasoning there was that Hardik has fitness issues. He may not be available. Hence, we are looking at a player who is guaranteed a place in the playing XI. That’s how Surya was elevated to the T20I captaincy. Now, if we equate that thought process with Test captaincy as well, on that basis, Jasprit may have to miss out,” concluded Bangar.
The wicketkeeper-batter has played most of his Test matches outside India. From his 3,257 run tally in 58 red-ball matches, 2,108 are overseas Test runs. Moreover, Rahul has notched up seven of his eight centuries on foreign soil.
With seven successive half-centuries, he also holds the record for most fifty-plus scores in consecutive innings in Tests. Furthermore, Rahul caught the second-highest catches in a match (seven) and in a series (14), to register a unique Test record in his name.
However, BCCI will have to select a Test captain soon before they tour England. The five-match series will kick off on June 20 in Headingley.
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