Sunil Gavaskar opposes Virat Kohli backing KL Rahul over Rishabh Pant as India's keeper

India wicketkeeper-batsman KL Rahul was seen performing various roles as per the team's demand in India's 2-1 series win against Australia. The right-hander donned the gloves in the series and also switched between the lower order to opening the batting in the 3-match ODI series. 

KL Rahul scored 47 runs in the first game in Mumbai while batting at No. 3 and played a magnificent knock of 80 runs in the Rajkot ODI after coming in to bat at No. 5. After looking at Rahul's ability to adapt in any given role, even skipper Virat Kohli admitted that the team would go forward with the Karnataka star as wicketkeeper in the upcoming New Zealand series as well.

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Sunil Gavaskar prefers Rishabh Pant over KL Rahul

However, veteran Indian batsman and one of the legends of the game, Sunil Gavaskar is not on the same page as the Indian captain. Gavaskar has made it clear that he would still prefer Rishabh Pant over others as his first choice wicket-keeper.

Team India is currently going through a transition. The team is looking for a perfect replacement of MS Dhoni. Since MS Dhoni’s departure from international cricket, Rishabh Pant has been given numerous chances but, the youngster hasn't been able to prove his mettle. 

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While speaking to a leading media network, Sunil Gavaskar said that he would go with Rishabh Pant in limited-overs cricket. He added that Rishabh Pant could don the role of a finisher for the team. He further said that there wasn't another left-handed batsman in the Indian batting line-up besides Shikhar Dhawan, so having Rishabh Pant in the squad would be beneficial for the team.

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Virat Kohli hinted that they would go forward with KL Rahul as the team's wicketkeeper as it provides the much-needed balance to the team. Also, the BCCI has not included MS Dhoni in the annual contracts list. It will be interesting to see as to who India goes forward with as the wicketkeeper of the team for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup in Australia this year.

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IMAGE COURTESY: BCCI TWITTER HANDLE