COLOMBO: Ahead of the three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka starting on Friday, India skipper Rohit Sharma admitted that choosing between K.L. Rahul and Rishabh Pant for the wicketkeeper’s slot will be a tough call, citing that the duo have won a lot of matches for the country in the past.
Rahul has been the side’s primary wicketkeeper-batter in ODIs since last year’s Asia Cup, post a quadriceps injury layoff. In his first international innings on return to the team, Rahul struck an unbeaten century, while sharing an unbroken 233-run stand with Virat Kohli in the Super Four clash against Pakistan.
In the ODI World Cup, Rahul amassed 452 runs with two half-centuries and a century, as well as took 16 catches and effected a stumping. He won the fielder of the match laurel twice. In India's previous 50-overs assignment in South Africa last year, Rahul played dual roles as well as captained the team to a series win.
But with him coming back after a quadriceps injury kept him out of Tests against England and a similar injury scare happening early in his time at Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in IPL 2024, it remains to be seen if Rahul will keep wickets in ODIs against Sri Lanka.
Pant, on the other hand, last played an ODI against New Zealand in November 2022, before a life-threatening car crash kept him out of action till he returned to IPL 2024. Since the T20 World Cup in June, Pant has been steady in his return to international cricket and playing in ODIs after nearly 20 months will mark a steady progression of his return to longer forms of the game.
“It is a tough call. Both are quality players. You know the abilities of both players. It's not easy to pick a team or pick a player when you have a quality like that. That's what these two individuals are all about. They are match winners in their own way. They have won a lot of games for us in the past.”
“It's always nice to have problems (in) picking up the team like that. When you are discussing too much about who to pick and who not to, that means there is a quality in the squad and team. I think it's a good thing to have these kinds of problems. I look forward to these kinds of problems till I am captain, ” said Rohit in the pre-series press conference.
The ODIs against Sri Lanka mark the return of Rohit, Virat Kohli and Kuldeep Yadav to international action for the first time since the T20 World Cup triumph in June. Later, Rohit and Virat retired from the shortest format on a high.
“Personally, I have had a good off time from cricket for a bit. After winning the World Cup, it was a great feeling to come back home and experience what we experienced in Delhi and Mumbai. But yes, now as we know, we have to move on, as cricket moves on. That is what happened after the 2023 ODI World Cup as well.”
“There was a lot of disappointment, but we had to move on and look forward to this T20 World Cup. Now that the T20 World Cup is over, we have to look forward and start thinking about what lies ahead for us as a team. Yes, that's a big tournament (2025 Champions Trophy) coming up. There's plenty to look forward to.”
“Personally for me as well, I am happy with where I am, how I have prepared myself. Every time that I have come to play a series, this is no different for me. So yes, we have had a good three days here and we have got another day to look forward to under a new coaching staff, which is quite exciting, ” added Rohit.
He signed off by saying he’s felt no difference after retiring from T20Is. “I loved playing that format. I did what I had to do. Now I'm very happy looking forward to the ODI and the Test format.”
“The only difference I feel is that I felt like I've been rested from the T20s like it used to happen in the past, and there will be a big tournament coming up and then we have to get ready for T20s again. I still feel it is like that. So I don't think I'm completely out of the format.”