The mega tournament of 2019 World Cup is inching closer with every passing day. The Men in Blue are almost ready for the tournament and are looking in pretty good shape.
India is currently ranked second in the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) ODI rankings. As a result many have rooted for Virat Kohli and Co. to win the prestigious tournament.
However there are still some major headaches that the management need to fix before the tourney. Among them is the form of top-order batsman KL Rahul, who didn’t have a good outing in recent international fixtures.
Moreover he had a controversial appearance in the television show Koffee With Karan. Nevertheless he was selected for the upcoming ODI and T20I series against Australia. The series will be played at home and is scheduled to begin from 24 February.
There were many eyebrows raised once the selection news was announced. This was because he was picked in place of in-form player Dinesh Karthik. Recently chief selector MSK Prasad has revealed the reasons behind Rahul’s inclusion. In a statement quoted by Hotstar, MSK Prasad said:
At such a major tournament [World Cup], we can’t afford to go in without a third opener. That’s why we have included KL Rahul for the T20Is and the ODIs against Australia. We have to see how he performs because his form is also very important.
More Articles Related To Cricket:
Can KL Rahul find his form?
The 26-year-old Indian batsman was selected for the Indian team after a stupendous 2018 IPL season. After getting selected he scored a T20I century against England. But since then he entered into a slump.
The youngster from Karnataka failed to impress in all the three formats. He failed in the Test series against England and couldn’t perform up to the mark against the Windies at home.
Despite failing several times, the selectors still persisted with him. As a result he was selected for the tour Down Under. He was named in the Test, ODI and T20I series against Australia.
But to his dismay, he floundered his chances and as a result was eventually dropped during the New Zealand tour. Once again he is selected which can be a make-or-break affair for the right-handed batsman.