India tour of Australia - 2018/19

[WubbaLubbaDubDub]

OUCH!! This does not look good at all. If he sustains that injury and does not open in the first test, Rahul and Vijay can consider themselves too lucky. Hope its nothing serious and hope he recovers quickly.

 

[LiveLoveABD]

He's out of the first test.

 

[abhi_jacko]

Well that decides the top-order for sure - poor Shaw. Such bad timing

Rahul
Vijay
Pujara
Kohli

 

[asprin]

I love how suddenly after a couple of bad knocks Rahul has become a bad test player.

I would disagree with the word "a couple of". Rahul's statistics in 2018 reads:

Mat|Inn|Runs|Avg|100s|50s
10|18|420|24.70|1|1

"18 innings" is a good enough number to ascertain whether a batsman is going through a lean patch or not. An avg 24.70, which has been bloated solely because of the 149 against England (take that out and it plummets to around 15) doesn't bode well for a batsman who's been continually praised a lot, especially here at PC. Talent alone isn't enough if it isn't getting the results. I've no doubt in my mind that there is something about Rahul that says he needs to be persisted with and the Indian team actually has. But to what extent? That's the reason I'm of the opinion that this series should decide whether he continues to find a place in the team and giving him the assurance that he will play all the Tests in this series seems fair.

For the record, I'm not saying he is a bad player. Rather, I'm saying he is going through a bad patch and needs to work on his batting and come back stronger.

The bloke has a century in England & Australia

Add to the above an interesting fact (I do not remember where I saw it but I would love to get my hands on that article again) that Rahul seems to follow a pattern where he scores/performs when it matters the least. The 149 against England is the latest example, with the series being lost already. And if I'm not wrong, the hundred in Australia was also under similar circumstances.

 

[zwarrior]

I love how suddenly after a couple of bad knocks Rahul has become a bad test player. The bloke has a century in England & Australia. The same people will then jump and crib that Kohli isn't keeping a stable line up. Whatever batting line up you choose, stick to it for 5 tests. You give people confidence and show faith in them, the returns will come. The quality is undisputed in the squad. Dropping Rahane is very short sighted as well. Our mistake in SA and ENG was this chopping and changing only. The only left field selection I'm making is Kuldeep as my spinner. He's the guy who needs to be the first spinner in Aussie conditions. I wouldn't mind a Umesh/Shami/Bumrah fast bowling line up either. I don't think Australia is going to be the best place for Bhuvi to bowl in tests.

It's not about him scoring, it's about him not able to get even decent starts and not having any confidence. He got to play all the 5 tests in England, both the tests against Windies. He is going through a very bad patch. And it's more than 3 series now. Anyway, he is getting another chance now as Shaw is out. This match is certainly going to be crucial for him. If Vijay performs well, Shaw is going to come in for Rahul.

The 100 which he got against England, you can clearly see the difference in his batting compared to other 4 matches. He was so confident and determined and runs came. In other matches, it looked like he came to bat just because he has to. I really hope he succeeds in this tour because I am a big fan of him.

 

[Gamer Pradosh]

Add to the above an interesting fact (I do not remember where I saw it but I would love to get my hands on that article again) that Rahul seems to follow a pattern where he scores/performs when it matters the least. The 149 against England is the latest example, with the series being lost already. And if I'm not wrong, the hundred in Australia was also under similar circumstances.

I can agree him going through a bad phase which is there in every cricketer's life..But I cannot accept the fact he gets out to really poor shots.. Edging to WK or slip even LBW are something which are tricky as conditions are varied but casual shot for a catch or bowled playing onto the stumps doesnt show quality.. His approach makes me feel like he has given up to come back stronger..

 

[abhi_jacko]

All this analysis of KL Rahul here is making him sound eerily similar to Rohit Sharma

I hope this guy shows better temperament and skills than Sharmaji and proves that he deserved the long rope that is being handed to him. A big score in the first test will help !!

 

[asprin]

All this analysis of KL Rahul here is making him sound eerily similar to Rohit Sharma

At least in Rohit's case, he does have something to show for in ODIs and T20s.

 

[abhi_jacko]

At least in Rohit's case, he does have something to show for in ODIs and T20s.

That happened only after Rohit 2.0 though

After 10 matches (no. of ODIs Rahul has played), Rohit was on the same level - actually a bit lower.

Rahul is still a fairly new face and while he is being given chances, it is nothing compared to what Sharmaji got during his "tough times"

 

[Velocity]

Shaw out injured. Rahul might have a whole lot of criticism going his way but he should be given a chance to play in Australia. He's shown capability and he looks like he can dominate when he's in form. He can form a successful pair with Vijay in Australia but he needs to click. He's got runs against an Aussie attack in 2014 which was very strong, similar in calibre to the one Australia currently have.
Lineup for Adelaide:

Vijay
Rahul
Pujara
Kohli
Rahane
Vihari/Ashwin
Pant
Bhuvi/Shami
Bumrah
Ishant
Kuldeep

I'd also be tempted to play Kuldeep in spin conditions like Sydney and Adelaide. For the other two tests, I would bring Ashwin for Kuldeep. The only issue here is the batting lineup. Pant is unpredictable, same goes for Rahane and Rahul. You can never expect how they're going to play and the runs they can make. If Kuldeep plays, Bhuvi should have a look in. His batting ability will be useful and he's very good with the new ball. The England Test series showed how useful runs from the lower order are crucial to a team's total.

 

[LiveLoveABD]

It's not about him scoring, it's about him not able to get even decent starts and not having any confidence. He got to play all the 5 tests in England, both the tests against Windies. He is going through a very bad patch. And it's more than 3 series now. Anyway, he is getting another chance now as Shaw is out. This match is certainly going to be crucial for him. If Vijay performs well, Shaw is going to come in for Rahul.

The 100 which he got against England, you can clearly see the difference in his batting compared to other 4 matches. He was so confident and determined and runs came. In other matches, it looked like he came to bat just because he has to. I really hope he succeeds in this tour because I am a big fan of him.

The bottom line is that he got a century in England. Had him and Pant gone on for an hour more, a test match win was not out of range. The two games against Windies he got out twice. It's hardly a monumental failure. Will we be sacking Shaw if he fails 3-4 tests and getting Dhawan back then? You have to back these guys. Specially Rahul because he's just something else. If he can develop temperamentally, Sehwag will no longer be remembered as the most destructive Indian opener of all time by the time he finishes. Mark my words.

And to those comparing Rahul and Rohit.. Rahul has a TEST CENTURY in Australia & England. Rohit probably hasn't even dreamt of that in red ball cricket although my gut feel is he will get a few runs in this series.

 

[Morphed]

Rohit should be given a chance, he plays short ball very well, and as an opener,his Odi statistics have also improved, so in tests also,it can happen. Add to that ,the flatness of the pitch in Australia. Well,nothing can be worse.

 

[WubbaLubbaDubDub]

Feel bad for Shaw, Rahul and Vijay both get a lifeline and they need to grab this. Vijay for some reason I feel will come good but Rahul has to sock up.

 

[aditya123]

Im really happy with how this wqrm up game has turned out for India. We may have not set the world on fire but the bowlers have had to toil and that is not particularly a bad thing for us. If the batting can have a few bright spots in the second innings, this would have been a solid and competitive outing and a much better way to enter a test match than going into it straight after a bunch of t20s.

 

[Master Bates]

Vijay rocks. Brilliant Hundred!