No wicketkeeping role for KL Rahul in England Test series, confirms Rahul Dravid

Team India’s head coach Rahul Dravid has made a confirmation about KL Rahul not operating as the wicket-keeper for the upcoming 5-match Test series against England starting from January 25 onwards at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad.

KL Rahul is the team’s 2nd wicket-keeping batsman option alongside KS Bharat who was taking part in the unofficial Tests for India A against England Lions recently. In the first match, Bharat scored 64 as the match remained draw while in the 2nd match after scoring 15 in the 1st innings, he went on to smack a brilliant 116 off 165 in the 2nd innings from number 8.

Rahul Dravid confirms that KL Rahul will not keep wickets during the #INDvsENG Test series.

Is KS Bharat locked in for a spot in the XI? pic.twitter.com/9B4p3sHBWJ

— Sportstar (@sportstarweb) January 23, 2024

So it could be possible that Rahul Dravid-led Indian management after seeing Bharat’s performance in those matches, has decided to let him operate as a wicket-keeper batsman from number 7 or 8. That could also mean that KL Rahul will feature as a specialist batsman in the Indian middle-order.

It is also a confusing decision as well because it was KL Rahul who kept the stumps when Rohit Sharma’s men returned with a 1-1 draw in South Africa. Bharat had to sit out in the 2-match Test series and it’s not even a month since that happened and Dravid has already changed his mind about it.

Will KL Rahul Appear As Specialist Batter? If Yes, Then Will He Come To Bat At No. 4?

Another possible reason for this change could be the absence of star batter Virat Kohli from the first two Tests in Hyderabad and Vishakhapatnam after he cited personal reasons to be withdrawn from the squad. It will be fair to say that we might see KL Rahul walk out to bat at number 4 after which there is Shreyas Iyer at number 5, Jadeja at 6, either of Axar and Ashwin at 7, and Bharat at number 8.

If that is the case then India will have depth in their batting order, something that will be required in the spinning Indian tracks

Dravid cryptically reasoned that not letting KL Rahul keep the wickets is a measure taken to manage workload and also for the fact that it will be a long series that will last close to 2 months.

“KL Rahul will not play as wicketkeeper in Test series against England considering the conditions and duration of the series,” Dravid said. 

This series will not just test a player’s skills and prowess but also test their patience as well as fatigue levels. Not just India but England too will travel a lot during the series. They will not have to travel much for the first two Tests as both of them are taking place in the region of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana but the main journey will begin from the 3rd Test onwards.

Both the teams are expected to travel for more than 4000 kilometers (if not less), first from Vishakhapatnam to Rajkot then Rajkot to Ranchi, and then to Dharamshala, the venue for the last Test in March. Players can also complain about fatigue and the game will not just take place on the field but out of it as well.

So with KL Rahul confirmed to not be the wicket-keeper in this series, his position and KS Bharat’s role will be interesting to see and time will tell what happens.