Gautam Gambhir’s no-nonsense remark on KL Rahul’s struggles

Gautam Gambhir has asked struggling KL Rahul to make full use of the upcoming ODIs against Sri Lanka to continue to be part of Team India. Rahul was removed as India’s vice-captain for the ODI series against Sri Lanka after he failed to impress as a batter on the recently-concluded tour of Bangladesh.

In fact, 2022 has been a dismal year for the batter. In 10 ODIs in the year, he only managed 251 runs at an average of 28. In T20Is, Rahul got 434 runs in 16 matches at a strike rate of 126.53 and scored just 137 in four Tests at an average of 17.

A powerful hitter of the ball, Rahul had a nightmare T20 World Cup as India exited the tournament in the semi-finals. Not surprisingly, the opener has lost his place in the T20I side for the Sri Lanka series.

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Gambhir, who works with Rahul at the IPL franchise Lucknow Super Giants, has asked the Bengaluru batter to not think about failures and instead focus on getting runs in the upcoming three ODIs against Sri Lanka

“You can only control what you can control. You can’t control selectors, you can’t control what’s going to happen in the next series. You got three ODIs against Sri Lanka. If you play that, just be in the present. That’s all you can control. The moment you start to think about uncontrollable things, you’re putting undue pressure on yourself,” Gambhir said in Star Sports’ show ‘A Chat with Champions’.

The former India opener further added that no one is indispensable in Team India and it’s the runs that will keep Rahul in the side.

“If you don’t perform, someone else will take your position. That’s not only with Sanju or KL, it’s with Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma as well. If they don’t perform, you will start questioning about their positions too. That’s what international cricket is about. No one is indispensable. So you got three ODIs, you bat in the middle-order, try and get those runs, because ultimately it’s the performance that keeps you in the side. Not the name, not your talent,” said Gambhir.

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