Can KL Rahul’s Test career survive this latest lean patch? | Cricket News

When a powerful shot down the inside of KL Rahul ricocheted off the leg of short-legged forward Peter Handscomb and nestled into the hands of wicketkeeper Alex Carey during India’s fourth-inning chase at the Kotla, you couldn’t help but feel a little sad for the Bengaluru to be boy. At a time when everything is falling into place for the team, it just doesn’t happen for Rahul. Even when he starts to look good, there is a bit of bad luck here and there that brings him down.
In a world where yesterday’s result is the only yardstick, 10 results under 25 is totally unacceptable. Opening players before him, like Mayank Agarwal or Shikhar Dhawan, have not survived such lean spells and management’s decision to stay with Rahul has prompted accusations of “favouritism” from former Indian pacesetter Venkatesh Prasad and a few others.
BCCI are also losing patience and the decision to relieve Rahul of vice-captain duties for the third Test clearly shows that the 30-year-old is treading on thin ice. The fact that Shubman Gil was in red-hot form in advance of the Australia Series and has had to wait, has increased the screaming for Rahul’s head.

Indian batting coach Vikram Rathour defended Rahul the other day and said he’s had difficult runs in overseas conditions, but former selectors chairman Krishnamachari Srikkanth thinks it’s time to give Rahul a break.
“I have tremendous admiration for Rahul’s class, in fact I call him Rolls Royce Rahul … but it’s just not happening for him at the moment. If I were the chair of the selectors, I would have gone up to him and told him to take a break for a while,” Srikkanth told TOI.
The ex-India opener says it can happen to anyone in the world of international cricket, especially an opener.

“I can’t identify a technical defect in his game at the moment. I think it’s more mental and all Rahul needs to do is take a break and clear his mind. There’s no reason he can’t come back full force,” Srikkanth said.
It’s not the first time Rahul has had a skinny patch. In 2018 he had a similar crisis in England and failed in the first four friendlies. At this point he was having a problem with letting his racquet hang from his body and he was tackled. But team management insisted Rahul had the class to succeed and he came back with a brilliant century in the second innings at the oval, alongside Rishabh Pant.

“But you should be aware that Rahul was a young player at that point … but now it’s significantly different and there are players like Shubhman who just don’t knock but knock on the door. And then there’s Prithvi Shaw. How long can you ignore valid claims?” said former Tamil Nadu player Sunil Subramaniam, who was India’s manager and part of Ravi Shastri’s think tank in the 2018 series.
As it stands, Rahul may only get one last chance in the third friendly in Indore. One gets the impression that Rahul has hit the nets well and that is why the current management is sticking with him. They believe he’s just a good inning away from finding form and it could happen at any time.

“But with all due respect to Rahul, it’s time to play Shubman. You can’t keep a player waiting when he’s in the form of his life,” said Srikkanth.
In a week we’ll know if Rahul gets his last chance or if it’s over for Shubman.