Senior journo hints at KL Rahul as India’s long-term future Test captain
KL Rahul is all set to miss India’s opening Test against Sri Lanka to be played from Friday, March 4 at the Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali. Rohit Sharma, India’s recently-appointed ODI and T20I skipper, has been asked to lead the national team in Rahul’s absence. Rahul is also unsure of taking part in the second Test in Bangalore.
The second Test is a Day-Night affair and will take place from Saturday, March 12 at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore. Virat Kohli, recently, stepped down as the skipper of the Test team following India’s 1-2 defeat at the hands of South Africa. Kohli’s abrupt decision has the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on its toes.
There’s no official confirmation on who should be Team India’s full-time Test captain. Sharma was named as the vice-captain of the Test team for the tour of South Africa Tests before a hamstring injury ruled him out of the entire tour. Sharma recently came back to lead the team in the limited-overs series against Kieron Pollard’s West Indies.
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KL Rahul, India’s ‘permanent’ Test skipper?
One of the senior Indian journalists, in the meantime, reckoned that Rahul could be looked into as India’s long-term captain in Tests. Rahul led the Test side when Kohli missed the second Test against South Africa due to an injury. Jasprit Bumrah was named as Rahul’s deputy for the game. India lost the Johannesburg Test by seven wickets.
I dont know what “permanent” means. But yes, he has been identified as the one who’ll lead going forward.
— KSR (@KShriniwasRao) February 18, 2022
Rahul, thereafter, captained India in the three-match ODI, but he couldn’t make an impact. The Men in Blue lost the series 0-3 with former skipper Virat Kohli also failing to deliver with the bat in hand. Rahul was then greeted with a lot of flak for not being able to lead the national team with precision.
Rahul was also the skipper of the Punjab Kings (PBKS) in the 2020 and 2021 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Although he performed well with the bat, his team failed to qualify for the playoffs.
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Rahul is now set to lead the Lucknow Super Giants in the 2022 edition of the IPL. Team mentor Gautam Gambhir has shown a lot of faith in him. It remains to be seen how he fares going forward.
