Former India skipper Mohammed Azharuddin is disappointed that a player of KL Rahul’s calibre isn’t realising his full potential as he urged the latter to work on his technical flaws with national team coaches.
“I think consistency is the problem in KL Rahul’s case. But I think there are coaches who should rectify his flaws. In my opinion, he is a good player but consistency is missing in his game,” Azharuddin told PTI in an exclusive chat.
Since his international comeback after a groin injury last year, Rahul has registered a string of poor scores. He was bowled round his legs for 39 in the first ODI against Sri Lanka in Guwahati on Tuesday (January 10).
“I think Rahul is getting out in a lot of manners. Primarily, it is not the good balls that are getting him out. It is poor shot selection first up that is causing problems,” Azhar added.
Senior batters Rohit Sharma (83) and Virat Kohli (113) were among runs in the ODI series opener and Azharuddin expects the duo to play a key role during the 50-over World Cup later this year at home.
“Both are very good and classy players and they have done well in the past too , as the records say. I do believe Kohli and Rohit will do fairly well in the World Cup. In ODI format, they have always been pretty consistent.”
During the recently-concluded T20I series against Sri Lanka, all-rounder Hardik Pandya led the Indian side as the likes of Rohit, Kohli and Rahul were not picked in the squad.
In recent times, Hardik has impressed one and all with his captaincy. He led the Gujarat Titans (GT) to the IPL 2022 triumph and then captained India to T20I series victory on the tour of Ireland and New Zealand before defeating Sri Lanka at home.
Commenting on Pandya’s leadership skills, Azharuddin said: “Hardik has looked good as a leader and seems that he can carry the team along. But he needs to be careful about his back as he had been out for a long time.
“India would need Hardik, the all-rounder and we can’t afford to risk injuries. Hardik has got a young team and that’s the way forward. To forge a winning combination, it will need strong co-ordination for the upcoming T20 series.”
(With PTI Inputs)
