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KL Rahul has to show markedly improved leadership acumen as he leads India against an active South African side in the second ODI on Thursday, with the three-match series and his long-term ambitions as Test captain at stake.
Rahul is mediocre at best in terms of “standing up and thinking”, an essential element of captaincy’s art, and in his 31 losses in the opening ODI, he also didn’t look like the bat that India was on for most of the game. defeated.
It’s been a problem since Virat Kohli was captain, and it still sticks out like a sore thumb, and no one knows what the specific solution is.
Again, this was an example of an opener – this time by Shikhar Dhawan – the indomitable Kohli held the fort before the middle order succumbed to a slower pitch where there was a turn and the ball was caught, creating a run Move-the-mill seamer Andile Phehlukwayo looks powerful.
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South Africa beat India both strategically and technically, which raised serious questions about Rahul’s product as a captain.
The main problem is that when Yuzvendra Chahal and Shardul Thakur are brought to the cleaners by Rassie van der Dussen and Temba Bavuma, if Venkatesh Iyer has bowled at least 4 or 5 times as the sixth bowler, then he is in the team What in the world did you do?
If Venkatesh is a professional hitter at the 6, why not use Suryakumar Yadav, who has more range and experience under pressure?
The next question that comes up is whether Rahul talked to Chahar or Ashwin when VanderDusen and Bavuma started sweeping — regular and reverse sweeps on good batting strips .
Unlike the Proteas, without a unique bowling change, they first introduced Aiden Markram’s break and limited the India captain to the bottle.
Also read: Kohli breaks Sachin’s record to become India’s player with most runs in away ODIs
The match was lost at the halfway stage when India batted, once Dhawan and Kohli were out in quick succession after their 90-odd stands. Suddenly, hitting a zone that looked easy became difficult.
Shreyas Iyer’s well-documented struggles with the short ball came to light again on the day, and the Mumbai Cards knew that playing an XI position in India was invaluable.
But following Rahul Dravid’s template, he’ll get his chance.
On the slow track, rotation strikes are a must and the likes of Rishabh Pant and the two Iyers will have to play a bigger role.
Likewise, Shardul Thakur, despite being 50 at the end of the game and not under pressure to target, will have to be a bowler, his main skill.
With over 70 runs in his 10-plus appearances, there were too many loose balls that didn’t help the team’s cause, and even Bhuvneshwar Kumar looked tedious when he returned to the national team after the Sri Lanka tour.
read: A generationND vs SA 1st ODI: KL Rahul blamed for missing wickets in midfield, midfield loss
The difference between the two sides is how the spinners performed – Ashwin and Chahal gave up 106 overs in their 20 overs, while Markram, Tabraiz Shamsi and Keshav Maharaj pitched 26 between them for a total of Made 124 pitches and got 4 wickets between them. them.
“It’s a kind of wicket that we come home to. It’s not your typical South African wicket. The wicket has corners (offered) and the ball stays straight, so it’s not easy for a new batsman to score,” the senior said. batsman Davan said after the game.
“The plan for the fixed batsman was to take it deep, but unfortunately I got a ball that turned a lot and I didn’t expect that to happen, but yeah, it happened,” he said.
Test captaincy is a different ball game than leadership in white-ball cricket, but Rahul knows all too well that when it comes to decision-making, the top will rely on the references they have.
The series loss to South Africa won’t do him any good unless the manager is bent on making him a leader.
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