KL Rahul was carrying drinks: Aakash Chopra slams Rishabh Pant's inclusion in playing XI in IND vs SL 3rd ODI

Former Indian cricketer-turned-commentator Aakash Chopra has ignited a firestorm with his take on KL Rahul’s unexpected exclusion from India’s playing XI for the third and final ODI against Sri Lanka in Colombo, where they suffered an embarrassing 110-run defeat on August 7.

With this crushing defeat, Team India lost the ODI series to Sri Lanka for the first time in 27 years. After the conclusion of the ODI series, Chopra expressed his surprise at Rahul’s omission from the playing XI, as he was doing well and was one of the standout performers in ODI cricket.

Aakash Chopra rips into Rohit Sharma and Gautam Gambhir for dropping KL Rahul in the 3rd ODI

The cricket pundit Aakash Chopra believes that the Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir and captain Rohit Sharma should have taken the clear call from the first game regarding their choice between Rahul and Rishabh Pant. He said that Rohit and Gambhir’s call to drop Rahul to favor Pant in the third game was unfair and influenced by multiple factors that he doesn’t want to share.

Chopra said that Pant is a “rockstar” and “X-factor” player and recently won the T20 World Cup 2024, so the team management should not have gone after him in the first two ODIs and picked Rahul, and when they went with the Karnataka star, then they should have backed the wicketkeeper batter.

Since 2023, KL Rahul has been a standout performer with an impressive batting average, and his contribution in crucial moments had been pivotal, so his sudden benching in the third match was really surprising for Chopra. He also opined that Rahul, who was seen carrying drinks instead of batting in the third ODI, was a surprising and controversial move by Gambhir and Rohit.

Aakash Chopra further validated his take by pointing out that star players like Shreyas Iyer and Virat Kohli were also underperforming, so the decision to drop Rahul was of course eyebrow-raising. Adding to this baffling decision, Chopra said that the conditions had nothing to do with it.

This decision isn't solely based on individual judgment: Aakash Chopra

Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube channel: “I was personally surprised when the choice was made between KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant, and KL Rahul was selected. This decision isn't solely based on individual judgment but involves multiple factors, including Rohit Sharma's input. Since 2023, Rahul has consistently been one of the top performers, with an impressive average among players who have batted multiple times.

"Despite a slight dip in recent matches, he has been crucial in scoring important runs. The decision to play Rahul instead of Pant, who is known for his X-Factor and past performances, reflects a strategic choice. But my question is, why do they not go back to him? However, the surprising thing was that Rahul was dropped in the third match.

"He was carrying drinks in the third game, and I was a little surprised, as he was playing well. They didn't make the change in a hurry, as the team had only lost two matches and top players like Shreyas Iyer and Virat Kohli were not also performing well, so why Rahul dropped? The conditions had nothing to do with it.”