Former cricketer Kris Srikkanth has backed KL Rahul to retain the No.5 spot in India's batting order for the opening Test against Bangladesh, starting on September 19 in Chennai.
Srikkanth preferred Rahul over Sarfaraz Khan despite the latter’s strong performances in his debut Test series against England earlier this year.
Rahul missed major chunk of the England Test series due to injury, which paved the way for Sarfaraz’s inclusion in the playing XI. The Mumbai batter grabbed the opportunity with both hands, scoring 200 runs at an average of 50.
While Srikkanth sympathized with Sarfaraz, he believes Rahul deserves to retain his place in the side.
"Honestly, I feel bad for Sarfaraz Khan. But this happens, at times, in Test cricket. You would have been playing well, but when a big player returns, you will have to lose your place," Srikkanth said while speaking on his YouTube channel.
Srikkanth also highlighted that Rahul's experience will be valuable for the Indian team in the upcoming Test tour of Australia.
"At the back of the mind, they are also keeping the Australia series. New Zealand are also coming. KL Rahul has performed well overseas, in Australia he has done well," he added.
Meanwhile, India's top four are set with Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, and Virat Kohli. Rishabh Pant is set to return as a designated wicketkeeper-batter at No.6. This leaves the No.5 spot to be decided between Rahul and Sarfaraz.
While Rahul scored 37 and 57 in the first round of Duleep Trophy match, Sarfaraz returned with scores of 9 and 46.
According to reports, KL Rahul is certain to feature in India’s playing XI for the first Test against Bangladesh as Sarfaraz Khan has been asked to play the second round of Duleep Trophy despite being picked in the squad.
India squad for first Test against Bangladesh
Rohit Sharma (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Sarfaraz Khan, Rishabh Pant (WK), Dhruv Jurel (WK), R Ashwin, R Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, Jasprit Bumrah, Yash Dayal.
