Ishan Kishan or Sanju Samson – Who Will Replace KL Rahul During India-Pakistan Asia Cup Clash?

Alur: In what would come as a major setback for the Indian cricket team ahead of the Asia Cup, coach Rahul Dravid confirmed wicketkeeper KL Rahul will not be available for selection for the game against Pakistan at Kandy on September 2. Dravid reckons a week more of rest would help the batter more and with the ODI World Cup coming up – the team is not ready to take chances. “People talk a lot about experimentation but even before 18-20 months, I could have told who were the candidates for the number 4 & 5 – it was always between KL, Pant & Iyer but unfortunately all got injured together,” said Dravid in a press conference.

So, who would keep wickets for the side now – will it be Ishan Kishan or Sanju Samson? If one has to go purely on form, then Kishan stands a better chance of making the XI over Samson. But, on the hindsight, Kishan is a top-order bat and with Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill set to open in all likelyhood, where does Kishan fit in? On the other hand, Samson is flexible and can slot in the middle-order. This is the question that would now give headaches to the Indian management ahead of the clash with Pakistan at Kandy.

Meanwhile, the Indian team that is practising at Alur would leave for Sri Lanka today as per reports. The cricketers who joined the team from the Ireland series would also be traveling to Sri Lanka. The Asia Cup starts tomorrow with the opener being played between Nepal and Pakistan in Multan.