‘There’s no one else’: Mohammad Kaif backs decision to appoint KL Rahul as ODI skipper ahead of SA series
Former India cricketer Mohammad Kaif recently came forward and talked about the BCCI’s decision to appoint star wicket-keeper batter KL Rahul as India’s ODI captain in the absence of Gill ahead of the South Africa series.
The BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) recently came forward and announced their squad for the upcoming ODI series against South Africa. It is worth noting that after the conclusion of the ongoing second Test, both India and South Africa will lock horns across three ODIs that are slated to be played on November 30, December 3, and December 6.
Announcing the squad, the BCCI named star batter KL Rahul as team India’s ODI skipper for the series. Notably, Rahul will be taking up the mantle of the captain as regular skipper Shubman Gill misses out due to a neck injury.
With Rahul being appointed as the stand-in ODI skipper in Gill’s absence, former India cricketer Mohammad Kaif came forward and backed the decision to name the star batter as the captain in the 50-over format.
“There’s no one else. Rohit Sharma should’ve captained but they moved on from him earlier. He should’ve been the captain now, given he is coming off a hundred in Sydney. The Indian team is now having a mindset of having to move on and giving opportunities to new players. Till the time Rohit is playing and in form, he should’ve captained. Virat Kohli won’t captain, Yashasvi Jaiswal doesn’t play that regularly, Tilak Varma and Ruturaj Gaikwad have been given opportunities. Even Rishabh Pant is coming back after a long time,” Kaif said in a video on his YouTube channel.
Kaif pointed out KL Rahul’s captaincy experience in the IPL
Furthermore, Kaif went on to state that with KL Rahul having some experience with captaincy in the IPL, the same could go on to help him as he is set to take on the Proteas as captain across three ODIs.
“Hence, he seems like the right choice. He has captaincy experience and even did it in IPL. Until Shubman Gill returns, Rahul seems like the right option. I’m still surprised though. The player who made the team, who backed KL Rahul, it’s Rohit Sharma. Despite being in the squad, the captaincy is snatched away from him. There will be questions about that,” he added.
