With another win in limited-overs cricket, India now have a 2-0 lead over England in the 3-match series. But amongst widespread celebrations in the cricketing world over a series win for India and several positive for the Indian team, some are rather unhappy with the kind of decisions team management has been taking during the ODI series. A prominent voice amongst skeptics is that of former Indian batter and selector Krishnamachari Srikkanth, who has now decided to hold it back in the face of victory and speak his heart out against a controversial decision of the Indian team concerning KL Rahul.
Kris Srikkanth criticized Gautam Gambhir over demoting KL Rahul in ODIs
After India’s win in Cuttack, the former Indian legend, who has been in the decision-making of the Indian team in the past, was not happy with the kind of playing combination and the batting order Indian has chosen to go for in the 2nd ODI. The former Indian selector seemed visibly unhappy with India’s head coach, Gautam Gambhir, and raised alarm bells of sorts over demoting Rahul at No. 6 in the batting order.
“I feel so bad for KL Rahul, Axar Patel is hitting well. What they are doing with Rahul isn’t fair; look at his record. He has a brilliant record at No.5, and not a lot of people can match that. I don’t know what the team management is doing with him, they are pushing him to No.6, where he’s scoring just six or seven,” Srikkanth said on his YouTube Channel.
Additionally, Srikkanth launched a full-scale attack against Gambhir, implying that it is after all his decision-making that has led to the sidelining of talent like KL Rahul in the limited overs format.
“Gambhir, what you are doing isn’t fair. It is not at all right. It is very unfair. In a crucial contest in the Champions Trophy, there is a good chance that Rahul might not be in form. You don’t need a left-right combination in the top four, but you need it after that. It is very unfair. Why waste KL Rahul at No.6? Play Rishabh Pant instead. Because of this, they might even drop Rahul, absolutely unfair to Rahul,” Srikkanth further added.
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Srikkanth defends Rahul’s batting position at No.5
Furthermore, the former Indian batter argued that a sudden shift in Rahul’s batting order can not only prove detrimental to his momentum rhythm and form but can also harm India’s prospects in the future.
“See, you have to play your best player at No.5, that’s all. It doesn’t matter if he’s a right-hander, left-hander, or middle-hander. I DON’T CARE! The whole thought process is flawed. It might work now but it might not work in the long run. India should just play their best batter at No.5 and not tinker too much with the winning combination.” Srikkanth concluded.
Rahul has made a total of 30 appearances at No.5 for the country and amassed a total of 1259 runs, averaging 57.22, almost ten runs more than his career average, with a strike rate of 95.45 to his name. Recently, the Indian team has dropped him down to No.6 giving way for Axar Patel to bat at No.5.
