Ishan was dropped to make way for Shubman Gill despite a record double ton in his previous match. Captain Rohit Sharma and head coach Rahul Dravid were blasted for snubbing Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav from the first two ODIs against Sri Lanka this week.
However, India great Mohammad Kaif feels that the call only reflects the captain’s thought process in the format which will witness a World Cup tournament in another eight months. Captain Rohit Sharma and head coach Rahul Dravid were blasted for snubbing Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav from the first two ODIs against Sri Lanka this week. What left fans more furious was that Ishan was dropped to make way for Shubman Gill despite a record double ton in his previous match.
During an interaction with Star Sports, Kaif was asked to pick between Rahul-Gill and Kishan-Suryakumar combinations and while he felt it difficult to choosing from the two, but he rather praised Rohit for his clarity in his selection.
He said “It’s a really tough one – Ishan + Surya or KL + Gill. I think Rohit Sharma has made it very clear as a captain. The boys have been playing for the last couple of years, they have been getting runs. Last year Gill and KL Rahul played well. Shubman Gill is opening the innings and getting runs and KL Rahul is finishing the innings, the way he did in the last game – fantastic. What I like about Rohit Sharma is that he is very clear in his thoughts.”
He added “He (Rohit) is not going flashy. Ishan Kishan and Surya will tempt you because they are fantastic players but he knows that he needs to give his players a long run, that’s why Gill and KL are playing.” Both Gill and Rahul have impressed so far in the series. While the opener scored 70 runs in first match of the series in a century stand alongside Rohit, Rahul scored an unbeaten 64 to guide India to a win in the second match.
