ENG vs IND, 2018: Sourav Ganguly Slams Team India Management for Dropping KL Rahul

Former India skipper Sourav Ganguly expressed disappointment over Indian team management’s decision to drop KL Rahul for the third and final One-day International against England at Headingley on Tuesday (June 17).

Rahul was in stunning form in this year’s Indian Premier League (IPL) while representing its franchise Kings XI Punjab (KXIP).

The Karnataka-based batsman Rahul opened the innings and scored a staggering 659 runs in 13 games including a 14-ball fifty which is the fastest-ever fifty in cash-rich league’s history.

He, however, was surprisingly left out from the playing eleven for the first Twenty20 International against Ireland. The chance came in the second game, and he capitalised by scoring 70 off just 36 deliveries.

The stunning display helped him retain his place in the playing eleven for the first T20I against England and continued his red-hot form with the bat.

Rahul slammed an unbeaten 101 off 54 balls, as India chased down 160 with ten balls to spare.

Overall, he scored 126 runs in the T20I series and managed to get a place in the playing eleven for the first two ODIs. And while he had nothing much to do in the first game, he failed to prove his worth in the second game. He came at a time when India was in a spot of bother, but was dismissed for a duck.

As a result, Rahul had to make way for Dinesh Karthik in the series-decider. The decision, however, has not gone down well with many and Ganguly is also one of the cricketing pundits to take a dig at the management.

Speaking after the game,  Ganguly criticised the decision and also said that India are over-reliant on their top-three – Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. The legendary skipper also batted for Ajinkya Rahane’s inclusion in the ODI side.

“India are too top heavy at the moment. If your top-order doesn’t get runs, then you are struggling. It is a big issue. You have to have quality like England have,” said Ganguly in his post-match analysis for the official broadcaster, Sky Sports.

 

“Eyes closed, I will have Rahul at four. Your top four have to be the best players and you got to persist with them. Go and speak to Rahul and say ‘we will give you 15 games’. Just go and play. They (the team management) are not giving enough opportunities at the moment. Rahul got the fantastic hundred at Manchester and now he was dropped. You won’t be able to produce players like that. Same for Rahane. These are your two best batsmen. You have to have a solid number four and five. Then you decide between Dinesh Karthik or MS Dhoni at six and Hardik Pandya at seven.

“I think two of your best batsmen (Rahane and Rahul) are not being looked after properly. I am not saying it is deliberate but it is my opinion either of the two have to be played at four because it is too much of a pressure, especially on Rohit and Virat Kohli. In South Africa, India did well because Kohli got three hundreds. If he doesn’t get a hundred, you will have issues,” he added.

Talking about the game, England thrashed India by eight wickets to win the series 2-1. Asked to bat first, India could only manage 256 for eight. In reply, England chased down the total inside 45 overs without really breaking a sweat.