‘It’s Sarfaraz Khan vs KL Rahul’: Focus on playing XI as Team India aims to bounce back in second NZ Test | Cricket News – Times of India

Sarfaraz Khan and KL Rahul

NEW DELHI: As the second Test commences in Pune on Thursday, India will be eager to make a strong comeback following their disappointing eight-wicket defeat against New Zealand in the first match at Bengaluru. The team management will be closely examining the optimal squad composition to ensure a competitive performance.
With spin all-rounder Washington Sundar being added to the squad, and Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant have been declared fit for the Pune game, the spotlight will be on the playing eleven selected for this crucial encounter, as Team India aims to level the three-match series.
Young Sarfaraz Khan, who replaced injured Gill, scored a brilliant 150 in the second-innings of the first Test, while KL Rahul remained off-colour in both the innings.
Will Gill is all set to return in the Pune Test, India’s assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate categorically stated that it is a battle between Sarfaraz and Rahul as both are fighting for a place in the XI.
“Yeah, there’s no point in sugarcoating it, there’s a fight for a spot,” Ten Doeschate said at the presser, ahead of India’s training session, when asked if Rahul and Sarfaraz were battling for a place in the team.
“Sarfaraz was obviously brilliant in the last Test. I went to KL after the last Test (and) said how many balls do you play at (and) miss at? He didn’t play at (and) miss at one ball and that’s what tends to happen when you’re not getting runs.
“There’s certainly no concerns about KL, he’s batting nicely, he’s in a good mental space. But we are certainly going to have to fit seven pieces into six spots for this Test and look at the pitch now and decide what’s going to be best for the team,” he said.
Admitting that it’s difficult to exclude Rahul from the Test format equation, ten Doeschate revealed that head coach Gautam Gambhir is “eager” to give him an extended run.
“It’s not like we’re worried about his form. If you go on just the past three months since Gauti has been in here, he’s keen to give him (Rahul) as much rope as we can. We have a lot of faith in him,” Ten Doeschate said.
“But at the same time, it’s a very competitive environment, with Sarfaraz getting 150 plus runs (222 not out) in the Irani Trophy final. The decision will be what’s best for the team, but we’ll certainly back all the guys in,” he added.