Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir has confirmed that KL Rahul will be India's designated keeper-batsman in the upcoming Champions Trophy 2025. The event starts from February 19 in Pakistan with India slated to play all their matches in Dubai.
India beat England by 142 runs in the final ODI in Ahmedabad on Wednesday. It was a series that produced a lot of positives for India with the Indian batting starts getting back amongst the runs.
Shubman Gill and Rohit Sharma scored centuries while Virat Kohli scored a crucial 52 in the final ODI. He looked in good touch before he was eventually dismissed by Adil Rashid. KL Rahul who batted at number six in the first two games was sent back to number five in Ahmedabad and scored 40 off 29 deliveries and looked comfortable at that number.
ADVERTISEMENT
Loading...
At The Moment KL Rahul Is A No 1 Wicketkeeper For Us - Gautam Gambhir
Meanwhile, Gautam Gambhir in the post-match press conference after the third ODI against England, confirmed that KL Rahul will be India's designated keeper-batter for the ICC Champions Trophy putting all doubts to rest. Rishabh Pant's last major international involvement was the T20 World Cup. He played the Tests against Australia but was not picked for the ODIs against England.
“At the moment, KL is a No.1 wicketkeeper for us, and he’s delivered for us,” Gambhir told reporters after the game. “And see, when you’ve got two wicketkeepers in this squad, you can’t play both the wicketkeepers with the kind of quality we’ve got. Hopefully, whenever he (Pant) gets that opportunity, he should be ready for it. That’s all I can say at the moment. Right now, KL is the one who’s going to start,” added Gambhir.
The India head coach was also asked about Jasprit Bumrah who was ruled out of the Champions Trophy on Wednesday. Varun Chakravarthy was named as his replacement and added to the squad. Gambhir did not say much about Bumrah's condition saying that the medical team took the final call on him.
India kick off their Champions Trophy 2025 campaign against Bangladesh (February 20) followed by Pakistan (February 23) and New Zealand (March 2). The Men in Blue will play all their matches in Dubai.
Also Read: IND vs ENG 3rd ODI Highlights: India make a thumping clean sweep statement ahead of Champions Trophy
