IND vs SA T20 Series – KL Rahul Captaincy: KL Rahul drew mixed reactions with his captaincy stint at Lucknow Super Giants. While he impressed, taking a newly put together side to the IPL 2022 Playoffs, he failed to take the team home. But that is in the past now, he will have a bigger job to lead India in the T20 series against South Africa. To make matters worse, he will be closely monitored by the BCCI and selectors. Follow India vs South Africa Live Updates on InsideSport.IN.
IND vs SA: Team India eye 3 BIG POSITIVES from T20I series…
With KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant being the two possible captaincy options after Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul will have to prove his worth in the five-match T20 series against South Africa series. He unsuccessfully led India in South Africa as the team lost the ODI series 0-3. While he had the backing of Virat Kohli then, it will be all him in the T20 series.
“It will be a great opportunity for KL. The only senior around him will be Bhuvneshwar and it will be the best test for him as a potential Indian captain. I won’t say he will be under pressure but certainly, he will be closely monitored,” a member of the selection committee told InsideSport.
IND vs SA T20 Series: Biggest CAPTAINCY test coming up for KL Rahul, selectors say ‘He will be closely monitored’ after FLOP SHOW in South Africa
IND vs SA T20 Series: Why KL Rahul will be under pressure as India captain?
- In four matches where he led India, the team lost all of them.
- KL Rahul led India in the 2nd Test against SA and India lost the match. Ind the ODI series, India were drubbed 0-3.
- His record as a captain in IPL isn’t good either. In 42 matches, he has a 50% win-loss record for Punjab Kings and Lucknow Super Giants.
- With No Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli or Jasprit Bumrah around, KL Rahul will only have Bhuvneshwar Kumar around him during the T20 series against SA.
- He will have to face the challenge of leading the team against a strong South Africa squad.
- India are also on the verge of a world record of winning 13 T20 matches on the trot and the BCCI expects KL to deliver that.
- With BCCI also looking for the next captain after the 2023 World Cup, KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant are two options and this will be his big test.
IND vs SA T20 Series: Biggest CAPTAINCY test coming up for KL Rahul, selectors say ‘He will be closely monitored’ after FLOP SHOW in South Africa
While it will be a “great opportunity” for KL Rahul, he will also be under scrutiny. He did not impress anyone with his leadership skills during the ODI series against South Africa. He was reluctant in changing field settings and did not utilise the bowlers properly.
“See, in South Africa tour, it was a new job for him. It’s not the same as leading an IPL franchise. Leading comes with immense pressure. He made some mistakes but it was also about learning. The T20 series is where he will be benchmarked. I am sure he will do an excellent job,” the selection committee member said.
India’s T20I squad: KL Rahul (Captain), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan, Deepak Hooda, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (vice-captain)(wk), Dinesh Karthik (wk), Hardik Pandya, Venkatesh Iyer, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik
IND vs SA T20 Series: Biggest CAPTAINCY test coming up for KL Rahul, selectors say ‘He will be closely monitored’ after FLOP SHOW in South Africa
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