NEW DELHI
\nIndia batter KL Rahul\u00eds prolonged slump in form is likely to cost him his place for the third Test against Australia with demands growing for Shubman Gill\u00eds inclusion in the match in Indore. India have retained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy with a 2-0 lead in the four-Test series but Rahul\u00eds form has been a major concern for Rohit Sharma\u00eds team.
\nWith a highest score of 23 in his last 10 Test innings, Rahul\u00eds place has become untenable as India chase a third successive victory that would seal their place in the final of the World Test Championship in June.
\n\u00ecI have tremendous admiration for the class of Rahul, in fact, I call him Rolls Royce Rahul,\u00ee former Indian captain Krishnamachari Srikkanth told the Times of India newspaper. \u00ecBut it is just not happening for him at the moment. If I was the chairman of selectors, I would have gone up to him and told him to take a break\u00d6\u00ee
\nRahul has retained his place for the last two Tests against Australia but is no more the team\u00eds vice-captain, which may be perceived as a sign of his imminent exclusion.
\n\u00ecOf late, there has been a lot of talk about his batting but for us as team management, we always look at the potential of any individual, not just KL,\u00ee skipper Rohit said in Delhi. \u00ecIf the guy has potential, guys will get that extended run. It\u00eds not just about KL, but anyone.\u00ee
\nGill\u00eds potential is even harder to overlook though. The 23-year-old already has a century in all three formats and his last seven international knocks include four hundreds.
\nThe elegant right-handed batsman smashed 208 in an ODI against New Zealand in January and his unbeaten 126 against the same opposition last month is the highest T20 score by an Indian batsman.
\n\u00ecWith all due respect to Rahul, it is time to play Shubman,\u00ee former opener Srikkanth said. \u00ecYou can\u00edt keep a player waiting when he is in the form of his life.\u00ee<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
NEW DELHI India batter KL Rahul\u00eds prolonged slump in form is likely to cost him his place for the third Test against Australia with demands growing for Shubman Gill\u00eds inclusion in the match in Indore. India have retained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy with a 2-0 lead in the four-Test series but Rahul\u00eds form has been a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":315745,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-315727","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports"},"yoast_head":"\n