India's ODI dilemma: Tough call between KL Rahul and Ishan Kishan

Ishan Kishan celebrates his 50 against Pakistan at Pallekele on Saturday. Pic/AP; PTI

To fathom the choices of the Indian cricket selectors and game plan of the team management is more complex than solving a world map puzzle for a 10-year-old. You need 10 good reasons to include a player in the team while one bad one is enough to keep another out. The squad has three left-arm spinners, but no left-arm pacer, and it there arises a need for an off-spinner, a left-arm unorthodox bowler is touted as a good enough replacement. A player who has just recovered from an injury is included in the team straightaway without having played a competitive match for over four months, while a player who has been doing well is given the cold shoulder.

KL Rahul

After the India squad was announced for the upcoming World Cup, even social media was agog about some strange choices made by the selectors. The hotly debated issue was the absence of off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin. An overwhelming majority feel that the Tamil Nadu player ought to have been selected in place of Axar Patel.

Also Read: Cricket World Cup 2023: ‘Balance, all-round options'

Focus on playing XI

Now that the 15 members have been picked, the focus shifts to the playing XI. The coach and captain have given enough indication that they would prefer KL Rahul as the first-choice wicketkeeper, ahead of the in-form Ishan Kishan. Chairman of selectors Ajit Agarkar and captain Rohit Sharma were of the opinion that experience will be a key factor in a tournament like the World Cup where the world's top 10 teams face each other in a long-drawn format. The mantra of the team management seems to be "been there, done that."

Captain Rohit said at the announcement of the team in Kandy that he always prefers experienced players. "In big tournaments like the Asia Cup and World Cup, experience plays a vital role. A person who has performed in tough situations in the past and done well in different conditions is always an asset. Thus, we have Rahul on the team. I know there is a debate whether it should be Rahul or Kishan, but it's a good headache to have for the team management. As far as I'm concerned, I want all 15 to be fit on matc day and available for selection. If we have to make tough choices, so be it. We will take the final call looking at the conditions and the strength of the opposition," he added.

Rahul backing Rahul?

Obviously, the Indian team management will keep their cards close to their chest, and let the media, fans and rival teams do the guesswork. But there is no doubt that just like then captain Sourav Ganguly had preferred Rahul Dravid as a 'keeper-batsman in the 2003 World Cup in South Africa, Dravid, now the coach of the Indian team, will prefer to have his namesake as a 'keeper-batsman at the upcoming World Cup. There will be a lot more clarity when India take on Pakistan in the Super 4s match on Sunday here.