NEW DELHI: Indian wicketkeeper KL Rahul’s batting position has often been a topic of debate within the Indian cricket fraternity. Many believe that a batter of his talent and ability should be batting higher up the order.
The same discussion resurfaced during the first ODI against New Zealand when Rahul once again showed his value in a tense chase that ended in a four wicket win for India.
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Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan has now explained why Rahul continues to bat at number five or six in the ODI setup.
“When KL Rahul bats people often ask why he is batting so low. But we need to keep in mind that the rule has now changed because the ball reverses slightly after the 34th over,” Pathan said on his YouTube channel.
“If the ball does not reverse it is slow. In those situations, a technically correct batter makes a difference. Other batters were getting slightly troubled in the first ODI but Rahul was well in control,” he added.
India were chasing 301 runs in Baroda against New Zealand and despite good knocks from Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli India looked in trouble as wickets were falling quickly.
KL Rahul stayed calm and kept things under control. When the required rate was close to 8 runs per over in the last five overs Rahul scored 29 runs off just 21 balls and finished the match with one over to spare. It clearly showed his experience and why he matters the most in such situations.
