Former Indian opener Krishnamachari Srikkanth has slammed India’s think tank for the batting order in the first two ODIs against England. As Axar Patel has been given a promotion in the batting line-up, KL Rahul has been demoted to number six.
Rahul has returned with scores of 2 and 10 in the first two games against the visitors. The flamboyant batter has been preferred ahead of Rishabh Pant but hasn’t got his chances in the first two games.
Meanwhile, Axar Patel has returned with scores of 52 and 41* in the first two games and he has grabbed his chances with both hands.
Srikkanth said on his YouTube Channel, Cheeky Cheeka, “Shreyas Iyer is in good form, which is a positive for India. But I feel for KL Rahul, it’s very unfortunate. Yes, Axar Patel is scoring 30s and 40s, but what they are doing with KL Rahul is not fair. Look at his record, he has excelled at No. 5, with a brilliant record. I don’t know what the team management is thinking regarding his position. If he bats at No. 6 or 7, he ends up scoring 6 or 7. It’s unfair.”
The former attacking opener feels Rishabh Pant would play in the third ODI against England and the team might also back him in the Champions Trophy ahead of KL Rahul.
“Now, what you’ve done is you’ve sidelined Rishabh Pant as well. One of them has to play. I have a feeling Pant will feature in the third ODI and then in the Champions Trophy too. Rahul might end up warming the bench again,” he said.
Srikkanth also gave a message to India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir that his obsession with right and left-hand combination is not right.
“Hey, Gambhir, what you are doing is not right. Yes, depending on the situation, India can send Axar at No. 5, but it cannot be a consistent strategy. If you keep making such changes, you know what will happen—there will be a crucial match where everything falls apart. That’s what worries me. You can’t justify it by talking about the left-right combination. Does that mean you don’t care about a left-right combination in the top four? Why does it only matter at No. 5?”
The final and third ODI between India and England will be played at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad on Wednesday.
