KL Rahul Does Not Know Why He Is Out Of the Team

The 3rd series decider ODI between India and England got underway with some controversial decisions from the Indian team management.

Cricket news: Kohli said it was a tactical decision at the toss

England skipper Eoin Morgan won the toss and asked the visitors to bat first. The hosts were forced to undergo a change as the injured Jason Roy was forced to be replaced by James Vince.

However on the other hand the visitors underwent three changes from the previous ODI. KL Rahul, Siddharth Kaul and Umesh Yadav were replaced by Dinesh Karthik, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Shardul Thakur respectively.

At the toss Kohli said that Karthik’s inclusion in the team was a tactical decision while opting for the other two bowlers was done to make sure all pacers get match time.

There was a lot of controversy regarding Rahul’s exclusion as the player was in the prime form of his life, remaining unbeaten in the first game while getting out for a nought in the second ODI.

After the match started, BBC Test Match Special’s Charles Dagnall wrote- “We asked KL Rahul why he had been left out and he said he didn’t know.”

Kohli said at the toss that had they won the toss, they would have also wanted to bat first and later hope the spinners do the necessary damage in the second half.

“We wanted to bat first anyway. Not much grass on it, so we expect the spinners to come into play in the second half. Looks fairly dry and it might break down a little. Bhuvi and Thakur come in for Umesh and Kaul. Rahul misses out for Karthik.”

Kohli also said that DK is a versatile player and is performing well recently and can fit in the No. 4 spot, which has been the main problem for the team in the past one year.

“DK was a tactical change and the other two because they haven’t got a game yet. Karthik has done well in that spot and we wanted a guy in the middle overs who can be versatile and improvise a little,” Kohli said.