By: Sandipan Bose
The chorus is getting louder. Make KL Rahul open the innings with Murali Vijay and not Shikhar Dhawan. Starting from former India captain Sourav Ganguly to Ajit Agarkar, everyone wants Rahul to get a longer run.
The kind of form he is in, no one wants him to warm the benches. The good news is that even the team management is also of the same opinion. If a player is in good form, he should be made to play the game.
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At the start of the West Indies tour, the team management too had backed Rahul to play from the very first Test match in Antigua. But at the last moment, Dhawan retained his place and Rahul had to miss out.
But things are completely different now. Rahul has enhanced his reputation so much that even if he is not made to open the innings. He should be in the playing XI somewhere in the middle-order.
Ravi Shastri, the former director of the Indian team, too agreed on that. He said that Rahul is the most improved batsman across all formats in last one year of international cricket.
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Indian Cricket Team coach Anil Kumble must be echoing the same the sentiments. It must be a matter of pride for Kumble to see someone batting with so much control in all formats of the game.
This is, of course, the beginning of Rahul’s journey in international cricket. The upcoming home series, which has 13 Test matches, will strengthen his batting prowess further.
By the time the next series begins against England, Rahul would have cemented his place in the Test team for good!
