5 reasons why KL Rahul was not selected in India squad for ICC T20 World Cup 2024

KL Rahul was India’s vice-captain in the last ICC T20 World Cup in 2022.

KL Rahul is one of the best Indian batters in international cricket at the moment, and he has been part of India’s all big events in the last 5–6 years. However, the stylish batter is all set to miss the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2024 as he hasn’t been selected in the Indian squad.

His absence from the squad came as a surprise to many because he was one of the leading scorers for India in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023, and his current form in the IPL 2024 is also pretty good. India have picked two wicket-keepers in the squad, but Rahul has to miss out.

Here are 5 reasons why KL Rahul was not selected in India squad for ICC T20 World Cup 2024

1. Conservative batting approach

KL Rahul has an average of 37.75 and a strike rate of close to 140. But in the last couple of years or so, his strike rate has gone down a bit, which has raised many questions about his batting approach in recent times. With the other batters scoring quickly and India already have Virat Kohli to play an anchor role, selectors might have dropped him.

2. Rishabh Pant’s return

Another factor is the return of Rishabh Pant. India have always gone with Rishabh Pant as the first-choice wicket-keeper across all three formats. But Pant wasn’t available for the last year and a half, and Rahul also kept wickets in two formats of the game. But as Pant has returned to competitive cricket and has also shown great form, India have picked Rishabh Pant.

3. Sanju Samson’s form

The real fight was for KL Rahul was for the spot of backup wicket-keeper. Rahul was fighting with Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, and a few other names. But selectors have gone with Sanju Samson as the second-choice keeper in the squad. Samson has been in red-hot form in the IPL 2024, which forced selectors to pick him as a backup keeper.

4. No place in top order

One of the other reasons is the batting position. Ahead of the IPL 2024, there were some reports claiming that Rahul might bat in the middle-order, but Rahul continued to open the innings for Lucknow Super Giants. India already have a settled top order, and India needed a wicket-keeper batter to bat in the middle order, whereas Pant and Samson can bat in the middle order.

5. Didn’t play a T20I since T20 World Cup 2022

The last T20 game for Rahul at international level came in the ICC T20 World Cup 2022 against England, which was the semi-final of the tournament. Since then, he hasn’t played T20Is, which may be an indication that the selectors have moved on from KL Rahul in respect to the shortest format of the game. He is still a part of Indian team in other two formats.

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