Senior BCCI Official Takes A Dig At KL Rahul For ‘Misleading’ Batting Videos On Instagram Stories

Rajkot: A senior BCCI official took a dig at KL Rahul for ‘misleading’ fitness updates after the India batter was ruled out of the third Test against England on Monday due to sore knee. The 31-year-old, who scored 86 and 22 in the first Test in Hyderabad, complained about pain in his right quadriceps before the second Test in Visakhapatnam and missed the game too. While the first Test ended on January 29, Rahul got ample time, two weeks to be exact, to recover but wasn’t 100 per cent fit according to the BCCI medical team.

While everyone was contemplating Rahul’s return in the already weakened Indian middle order, the right-hander put a video on his Instagram stories, thus giving fans a glimmer of hope. Even the BCCI also stated Rahul’s availability is subject to fitness while announcing the squad for the final three Tests.

Rahul’s extended break raises a serious question about whether the senior India players and the BCCI’s medical team are giving proper picture about the injury status of certain players. “If the BCCI’s medical team knew in first place that Rahul’s quad injury is as serious as it looks, why in the first place was he kept in provisional squad,” a senior BCCI official told PTI.

“And why is the player sending wrong signals by posting videos of his batting on Instagram stories,” he asked further. On Monday, BCCI stated Rahul reached 90 per cent of his match fitness and is under the supervision of the BCCI medical team.

“KL Rahul, whose availability for the remaining three Tests was subject to fitness, has been ruled out of the third Test against England in Rajkot. Rahul has reached 90 per cent of match fitness and is progressing well under the supervision of the BCCI Medical Team,” it said.

“He will continue his recovery process at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru to be completely match-fit for the fourth and fifth Test.” Devdutt Padikkal, the talented Karnataka left-hander who is enjoying a great first class season, replaced Rahul in the squad.

With Rahul ruled out of the third Test and possibly fourth, the doors could open for Sarfaraz Khan in the middle-order now that Shreyas Iyer has also been dropped. However, there will be more selection conundrum if Jadeja takes his rightful place in the XI. Axar Patel has batted well in the two Tests so far and Kuldeep Yadav was the second best Indian bowler in Visakhapatnam after Jasprit Bumrah.