The Board of Control for Cricket in India appears to have made a U-turn on the exclusion of KL Rahul for the ODI series against England. Though Rahul had sought a break from the series and the board had also agreed to it, recent developments seem to indicate that the BCCI is now keen to have him available for the ODIs, with the selection committee headed by Ajit Agarkar keen to add him to the squad.
“The selectors had first decided to give rest to the middle order batsman-keeper in ODIs for the entire white-ball series against England at home. But, now, having changed their mind, they have asked him to play to get some match practice ahead of Champions Trophy in February.
While the Indian batting line-up struggled in Australia, Rahul was one of few consistent performers and ended as the third highest run getter in that series with 276 runs in 10 innings at an average of 30.66.
While Rahul is pretty strong in the selection pecking order, for his place in the Champions Trophy-bound squad, though, there was strong competition from Pant and Sanju Samson as well. For once, being one of the selectors’ likeliest picks for an England trip ahead, now, to measure his progress over the forthcoming three-match ODI series in England.
According to a report by Cricbuzz, BCCI has asked for an extension from ICC regarding the announcement of the Champions Trophy squad. This was due on January 12, which now might not be possible, hence leaving a cloud of uncertainty over the selection. As many as Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Sanju Samson, Kuldeep Yadav and Varun Chakravarthy remain in the contention.
