India's 1983 World Cup-winning all-rounder Roger Binny believes that there is a healthy competition between KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant for the wicketkeeper’s role in the Team India since the Karnataka batsman considers himself more as a batsman.
Hailing the two future stars of the Indian cricket team, Binny noted that Rahul is an opener par excellence who can double up as a keeper while Pant is a brilliant talent.
Binny told Sportskeeda: “I think, it’s a healthy competition because KL Rahul actually picks himself as a batsman. He is a brilliant opening batsman, who can keep, who can double up as a keeper also for the team, whereas Pant is a middle-order batsman. He is a brilliant talent. He’s got the shots; he is ideally suited for the shorter version of the game. If somebody has a rough season, you can always call back the other. Both can even fit into the team as batsmen.”
The former cricketer also said the competition between Rahul and Pant would be a good thing for the Indian Virat Kohli as it gives him a readymade backup for the wicketkeeper-batsman role at the side.
He added, “It is basically what the team needs. See, if the captain feels Rishabh can perform there as a wicket-keeper, he’ll get it. If they lose confidence in Rishabh, they can go back to KL Rahul, but they have somebody in the team who can keep wickets too. That’s a good thing to have with you as captain.”
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On his wicket-keeping, Rahul once had said: “I am honestly loving it, in the international stage it might look that I am new to wicket-keeping, but I have done this role in the domestic cricket. I have done it for my IPL franchise; I enjoy staying behind the stumps.”
He added, “It gives me a great idea of how the pitch is playing then I can pass on the message to the skipper and bowlers. Wicket-keeping requires you to be pro-active. I am enjoying the responsibility.”
(With Sportskeeda Inputs)
