India captain Virat Kohli on Sunday said KL Rahul will continue to keep wickets as of now as he provides a good balance to the team. He has been doing good with the bat in recent times. Even, he has done a great job in the series against Australia after Rishabh Pant was out due to concussion.
”I think lack of clarity in terms of positions has really hurt us in the past. Now that we understand that this feels right, we will go ahead with that for a while and figure out if this is the right thing to do or not. You cannot chop and change immediately and create confusion among the group,” Kohli said in the press conference. “We are playing very well, unchanged team and did the job two with back to back wins. Don’t see any reason why we should change this balance. It has done well for the team.”
“It (Rahul’s keeping) definitely allows us to play an extra batsman which strengthens our batting massively. That is a very important factor as far as the team balance is concerned,” he said. “If you look at the 2003 World Cup when Rahul bhai started keeping, the balance became different because you could play an extra batter and guys at the top could really play positive cricket.”
KL Rahul batted at No 3 in the first game, at No 5 in Rajkot before opening in the final game as Shikhar Dhawan was injured.
“Look, he is very open to playing anywhere because he is a proper batsman and can do you good in any format and any position in the game. He won’t go slam-bang from ball one but he can do what he did in Rajkot playing good cricketing shots. So I think a solid game plan and understanding of his game is helping him,“ Virat Kohli explained.
However, Kohli was happy that Rahul has improved his game and becomes a match-winner now.
“He has reflected on what he needs to do in the last five-six months and he has come a long way. Good signs for us. Gives a boost to the team because he keeps as well,” said the captain.
“Look we have what we have in the team. It is just that Rahul really brings in good balance if he can keep and bat that well in that position. He has come into the slot and he has done well so we will have to persist with that a little bit and see where that takes us and not necessarily be confused about the other options we have,” Virat Kohli concluded.
