Zaheer Khan drops crucial verdict KL Rahul's permanent seat in India's Test team

Former Indian pacer Zaheer Khan lauded wicketkeeper-batsman KL Rahul for his consistent performances with the bat in recent years. Zaheer Khan highlighted KL Rahul’s success in the ODI World Cup and the Test series against South Africa in away conditions.

KL Rahul scored 86 runs off 123 balls, including eight fours and two sixes, in India‘s first innings at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad. The right-handed batter fell short of his ninth Test century as he was dismissed by debutant Tom Hartley.

The Rohit Sharma-led team was bowled out for 436 runs in their first innings during the series opener. Apart from Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal (80) and Ravindra Jadeja (87) shone with the bat. Joe Root was the standout bowler for the visitors, taking four wickets for 79 runs.

KL Rahul Has Had A Lot Of Injury Concerns – Zaheer Khan

Zaheer Khan highlighted that injuries impeded KL Rahul‘s peak form, preventing him from capitalizing on it. Zaheer emphasized a rejuvenated and evolved version of Rahul’s cricketing prowess, labeling it as a ‘2.0 version.

“If we look at Rahul’s career, he has had a lot of injury concerns. There have been times when he has been injured while hitting peak form and he hasn’t been able to capitalise on this form, something you require in international cricket. But looking at the recent past, with the successful World Cup campaign and the South Africa series, we can say this is a 2.0 version of Rahul,” Zaheer said.

Rahul scored 452 runs at an impressive average of 75.33 across 10 innings in the ODI World Cup. The 31-year-old played a 101-run innings in the Centurion Test against South Africa. He continued to display responsibility as a middle-order batter against England.

KL Rahul Is A Wonderful Batsman – Owais Shah

Former England cricketer Owais Shah praised KL Rahul’s batting technique, highlighting his preference for straight bat shots over horizontal bat shots. Shah noted that Rahul used the sweep shot only a few times, unlike many English batters.

“If we look at his batting, he attempted the sweep shot only four times, whereas most of the English batsmen played the sweep. He played with a straight bat and got his boundaries and singles with straight-bat shots. Many say we should not play KL Rahul, but I would say he is a wonderful batsman and should play regularly,” said Shah.

Ravindra Jadeja And Axar Patel Are Good Batters – Anil Kumble

Former Indian captain Anil Kumble emphasized Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel’s capabilities and stated that they aim to extend the lead to 250 in the first innings.

“I think these two batters (Jadeja and Axar) will look to stretch the lead to 250. Both of them are good batters and have got a good start. So I think they would be looking to a lead of 245-250,” said Kumble.

Axar Patel scored 44 runs off 100 deliveries, featuring seven boundaries and a six. The left-handed batter was dismissed by Rehan Ahmed as India was bundled out for 436 runs in their first innings.

Also read: “KL Rahul was the biggest culprit..”- Michael Atherton