Rahul Dravid, the head coach of Team India, referred to MS Dhoni when discussing the need for wicket-keeper hitters, adding that the day of pure glovemen may be long past in the present day and age.
In the Indian team, the battle for the position of wicket-keeper across all formats is fierce, with up to five players vying for the position. The Indian team, as per Dravid, is fortunate in that aspect because all of the potential wicketkeepers who are now competing for a slot and are on the outside are also capable batsmen.
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Dravid claimed that since Dhoni entered the picture, the days of specialist wicketkeepers are long gone during the pre-match news conference prior to the third ODI against New Zealand.
The famous batting lineup from yore was accommodated by Dravid, who himself kept the wickets during his time, and remarked, “There is no doubt that we are always looking for a wicketkeeper-batsman. Unfortunately, I believe that since MS Dhoni, the days of specialist wicketkeepers in white-ball cricket have departed”
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“We are fortunate in that all of the players in contention, whether it is Ishan Kishan or KS Bharat, are both good batsmen who have performed well in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. Bharat has not played, but Ishan has clearly performed well as a batsman,” Rahul Dravid added.
“You should be able to bat and contribute significantly”: Rahul Dravid
When discussing the addition of Jitesh Sharma to the T20 team, Rahul Dravid noted that there are also players like KL Rahul and Sanju Samson who are also excellent batters in the mix.
“Rahul and Samson are present, but Rishabh is injured. All of these players are wicketkeeper-batsmen. Nowadays, I believe you must be a wicketkeeper-batsman. You should be able to bat and contribute significantly”
“We’ve also added Jitesh Sharma to the T20 squad because of his ability to bat and score runs at a high rate, which he demonstrated in the Mushtaq Ali Trophy and the IPL. So certainly, it’s a given now that every side needs a wicketkeeper-batsman,” Rahul Dravidremarked.
Ishan Kishan and KS Bharat are expected to see more playing time at the highest level given that KL Rahul won’t be available for the New Zealand ODIs and Rishabh Pant will be out for a significant amount of time.
Also Read: IPL 2023: “Key Players Will Compete In IPL Unless There Are Injury Concerns”- Rahul Dravid
Virat Kohli | Rohit Sharma | Rishabh Pant | KL Rahul | Suryakumar Yadav | Sanju Samson | Shreyas Iyer | Yuzvendra Chahal | Jasprit Bumrah
