KL Rahul and Ishan Kishan cannot be named in India’s playing XI together for the ODI World Cup at home, according to former all-rounder Irfan Pathan, who added that they can only play together if a player in the top-order is injured.
If not, he said, only one of them could be added to the team because they are competing for the same position. The 38-year-old continued by stating that Rahul ought to be given preference over Kishan because of his outstanding performance over the last two years.
“Both are ineligible for the starting XI. Both can only play if a top-order player suffers an injury, which we don’t want to happen, or completely loses his form. Regarding the ongoing discussion, I just have one thing to say,” Pathan said to Star Sports.
“Ishan Kishan, who was batting at No. 5, scored runs against Pakistan. God forbid, will we say he is out of form if he loses the following game? That is not the case, though. We rapidly forget things. We must always keep in mind KL Rahul’s statistics over the past two years, as well as the fact that Ishan Kishan has just played one inning.
You shouldn’t be able to remember things quickly: irfan Pathan
Pathan went on to say that the Indian team should think “long-term” because making “short-term” strategies will make the team unstable.
You shouldn’t be able to recall things quickly. You should think strategically, and in my opinion, the management is doing just that. If you keep acting in a short-term manner, it will be very difficult to assemble a team, maintain it, and instill confidence in the players, he continued.
Rahul should be selected over Kishan in the opening round of the ODI World Cup, he suggested. The 38-year-old feels that Kishan should be utilised for the remainder of the season if Rahul is unable to produce.
“Just keep in mind that if KL Rahul plays and doesn’t find his form, you may claim that he didn’t recover from injury and award Ishan Kishan the entire World Cup. But he will play as soon as KL Rahul gets here,” the former cricketer said.
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