‘I am not hundred percent certain’, former India opener backs struggling KL Rahul in place of Sarfaraz Khan for Border-Gavaskar series 2024
New Delhi: Former India cricketer Aakash Chopra stated that if given the choice to select between KL Rahul and Sarfaraz Khan for the playing XI against Australia, he would still opt for Rahul, despite Sarfaraz’s impressive 150-run performance in the first Test against New Zealand in Bengaluru. Chopra further emphasized his preference for including Dhruv Jurel in the lineup over Sarfaraz as well.
India is set to encounter Australia in a five-match Test series beginning November 22 in Perth. Although Sarfaraz Khan is a strong contender for the middle-order position, KL Rahul’s extensive experience in Australia, including a century in Sydney, gives him an edge in the selection process.
KL Rahul and Dhruv Jurel have traveled to Australia to participate in the second ‘unofficial Test’ between India A and Australia A, starting November 7 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. This opportunity allows them to gain valuable match experience ahead of the first Test in the series against Australia.
“KL Rahul and Dhruv Jurel have been sent to play in the India A game. In my very humble opinion, if you ask me to do a toss-up even today that you have to play one of KL Rahul and Sarfaraz in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Sarfaraz scored 150 for sure, give it to him, but I will say go with KL Rahul,” Chopra said while speaking on his YouTube channel.
“If you tell me that you have to play one of Sarfaraz Khan and Dhruv Jurel, assuming one of them can play in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, I might still be tempted to go with Dhruv Jurel. My simple reason for that is I am not 100% certain about Sarfaraz’s playing style,” Chopra said.
The former Indian cricketer noted that it is widely recognized that the Mumbai star excels at playing spin, leading Australians to likely counter him with top-class pace bowling in the upcoming series.
“I like the kid, I love the kid, I want him to do well, but I feel it will be a very difficult examination because of the way he scores runs. He will not at all be shown spin there and runs won’t be scored in that direction against fast bowling,” Chopra said.
Notably, Sarfaraz participated in the Top End U-19 series in Australia in 2013, where he managed to score only 38 runs across two matches.