India’s batting order has come under fresh scrutiny after the team’s 27-run defeat to England in the third ODI at Lord’s, a result that handed the hosts a 2-1 series victory. Former India captain and chief selector Kris Srikkanth has strongly criticised the team management for sending KL Rahul down the order, calling the decision a “gross injustice”.
India were chasing a challenging target of 388 when Rahul came in to bat at No. 6. By then, the visitors were 304/4 and needed nearly 15 runs per over. Rahul scored 12 runs off eight balls before being bowled, as India eventually finished 27 runs short.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Srikkanth questioned the decision to hold Rahul back in the batting order. He said that Rahul has played several match-winning knocks in difficult run chases and argued that using him as a lower-order batter was unfair. Srikkanth also suggested that the current team management, led by Gautam Gambhir, had made similar decisions involving Sanju Samson and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in the T20I format.
Former India spinner R Ashwin also shared his observations, saying that some players appeared uncertain. His comments came after several former cricketers expressed concerns that repeated changes in the batting order, including the handling of Sanju Samson, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Rohit Sharma’s situation, could leave players feeling insecure about their places in the team.
Srikkanth believes Rahul should have batted at No. 4, a position where he has previously built successful partnerships with Virat Kohli. He pointed out that India needed a batter who could play a role similar to Jos Buttler, who scored a quick 41 off 13 balls for England. According to Srikkanth, Rahul has shown in the past that he can build an innings and accelerate when required, as he did alongside Virat Kohli during the 2023 World Cup. He felt sending Rahul in only when the required run rate had climbed to around 15 an over left him with little chance of changing the result.
Rahul’s move down the order was not a one-off decision during the series. In the absence of injured Hardik Pandya, India have increasingly used Rahul as a finisher. However, that approach has also broken up the Kohli-Rahul-Shreyas Iyer middle-order combination that had previously provided stability to the batting lineup.
Do you agree with Srikkanth?
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