 "Gautam Gambhir continues to back under-fire KL Rahul, says India doesn't pick XI 'because of social media'")
Middle-order batter KL Rahul is under fire after his poor returns in the first Test between India and New Zealand in Bengaluru. Rahul was among the five Indian batters dismissed for a duck in the first innings as the Indians were shockingly bowled out for 46 in overcast conditions at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium. Rahul’s form didn’t improve in the second innings either as he was caught-behind on 12 even as the likes of Sarfaraz Khan, who had also been dismissed on nought on Day 2, bounced back with a majestic 150 .
There have been calls for the team management to bench Rahul for the second Test in Pune, which gets underway on Thursday, with Shubman Gill likely to return to the No 3 spot after missing the Bengaluru Test due to a stiff neck.
Read | Rahul, Sarfaraz fighting for a spot, no point in sugarcoating it: Assistant coach ten Doeschate
India head coach Gautam Gambhir, however, insisted that the team could continue to back Rahul, and that “social media doesn’t decide XI”.
“First of all, social media does not matter one bit. You don’t pick players on social media or because of social media, or for that matter even what the experts are saying. What the team management thinks and what the leadership group thinks is very, very important,” Gambhir said on Wednesday on the eve of the second Test.
Read | Parthiv Patel backs KL Rahul over Sarfaraz Khan for second India-New Zealand Test
The former India opener cited Rahul’s blazing half-century in the second Test against Bangladesh in Kanpur as an example of the impact that the wicketkeeper-batter can have on the team’s fortunes.
Impact Shorts
More Shorts“Ultimately, everyone is judged. International cricket is all about being judged, to be honest, because everyone’s performance will be judged eventually. I feel that he is batting really well. Obviously, he has had a decent knock in Kanpur, on a difficult wicket, and played according to the plans as well,” Gambhir added.
With the head coach backing Rahul and both Gill and Rishabh Pant reportedly available for the second Test, with the former set to return to the one-down spot, the hosts will likely have to bench Sarfaraz despite his brilliant outing at Chinnaswamy.
Read | How a slow turner in Pune can help Team India bounce back in Test series vs New Zealand
The Mumbaikar added 177 for the fourth wicket with Pant (99) to help India cross 400 with seven wickets in hand. Rahul’s dismissal, however, sparked another batting collapse that saw the hosts go from 408/3 to 462 all out.
New Zealand were set 107 to win as a result, and they chased it down with eight wickets in hand on the final day despite losing skipper Tom Latham for a duck in the very first over of the fourth innings.
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