KL Rahul To Play Ahead Of Sarfaraz Khan In 1st Test Against Bangladesh – Report

KL Rahul is all set to play for India in the first Test against Bangladesh, which is scheduled to take place at MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai and start on September 19. According to a report in news agency PTI, the 32-year-old right-handed batter, who served as India’s captain in the last Test series played between India and Bangladesh in December 2022, is likely to get preference over Sarfaraz Khan as India’s No. 5 batter in the first Test of the two-match series.

Rahul, who made his Test debut for India against Australia in Melbourne on December 26, 2014, has 2863 runs to his name in 50 red-ball matches played so far. In his last Test for India against England at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad, he scored 86 runs in the first innings.

According to a BCCI source, Rahul’s experience will give him preference over Sarfaraz, who made his Test debut for India against England in Rajkot on February 15, 2024, and impressed everyone with his batting in the last three Tests of the five-match series, which India won by a margin of 4-1 under Rohit Sharma’s leadership.

“For people on the outside, they don’t understand how a team works and what are the systems in place. In his last three Test matches, KL scored a century in South Africa, one of the best Test knocks in recent times, and 86 at Hyderabad in the last Test he played before injury. He was not dropped but got injured. So, he is fit and available, scored a fifty in Duleep (Trophy), got match time, and he will start,” a BCCI source was quoted as saying by PTI.

The team management and the selection committee’s full focus is on the tour of Australia in November-December, and Rahul’s experience of 50 Tests puts him in an advantageous position.

“Sarfaraz has done everything right, and mind it, if there is an injury anywhere, he will just walk in, but Rahul’s experience is irreplaceable. And the team management is not just looking at Bangladesh; they are looking at Australia, where previous experience matters,” the source added.

The same theory of continuity will also be applicable in the Rishabh Pant vs Dhruv Jurel case and 26-year-old Pant will play in the series opener.