Dinesh Karthik has discussed the potential for KL Rahul to take on the wicketkeeper role for India in the upcoming World Test Championship (WTC) final, should they qualify.
Karthik said that he believes KL Rahul isn’t fond of being a wicketkeeper in Test matches. He also mentioned that keeping in the red-ball cricket format is distinct from keeping in shorter formats.
Dinesh Karthik on KL Rahul becoming the wicketkeeper
Talking about the possibility of KL Rahul playing as a wicketkeeper in the World Test Championship (WTC) final.
“I will see how Rahul feels because KL is not somebody who enjoys keeping in Test cricket because it is a completely different ball game. But I will definitely keep that in the back of my mind. It is an option that is very, very usable if KL is up for wicketkeeping,” Karthik said.
It’s worth noting that KL Rahul was dropped from the playing XI before the third Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia due to his poor performances. However, considering his impressive record in overseas conditions, India may consider including him in the team for the upcoming WTC final in London. Rahul was one of India’s standout performers during their tour of England in 2021-22, where he scored 315 runs, including a century and a fifty, in four Test matches.
Karthik picks Shubman Gill for WTC final
According to Dinesh Karthik, India should keep faith in Shubman Gill for the WTC final and give him an opening spot, as he showed great promise with his century against Australia in the Ahmedabad Test. Karthik believes that Gill has the potential to be an opener for India in the long term and should be backed by the team management for at least a decade.
“I will definitely go with Shubman Gill, there’s no doubt about it. The man’s got a hundred in the last Test before the WTC final. You get the feeling that Shubman Gill is in for the long run. He is a long racehorse. He’s the one that you want to put your money on and say, ‘I want to see him in 2033 still there opening for India’,” he said.
Gill’s excellent performance with the bat in the ongoing fourth Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy has strengthened his chances of being selected for the WTC final. He scored his second Test century, scoring 128 runs in India’s first innings. However, it should be noted that India has not yet secured a place in the WTC final, which will take place in June at the Oval in London. If they win the fourth Test against Australia in Ahmedabad, they will qualify directly for the final.
In case India fails to win or draw the fourth Test against Australia, their destiny will no longer be under their control. In such a scenario, Sri Lanka could potentially make it to the WTC final if they manage to defeat New Zealand 2-0 in their present series.
