The Indian cricket team will be playing the fifth and the final test match against England from 7 March at Dharamshala. Though there is still good time remaining for the selectors to select the team, the matter of KL Rahul’s fitness has made them a little worried.
The selectors are in the mood to drop Rajat Patidar as he hasn’t been able to make any impact with the bat in this series. He has played at number 4, his highest score has been 32 runs in this series till now and he has also got out for duck on two occasions. In fact, the selectors are not happy with the manner in which he has got out and they want him to go and play domestic cricket but it can happen only after KL Rahul returns to the team.
However, KL Rahul has flown to London to consult an expert as he is still experiencing pain and discomfort in his right quadriceps despite the NCA medical team not finding any problem after having multiple scans and tests. The expert in London is the same person who has conducted surgery on the cricketer and he may be able to find out the real reason behind KL Rahul’s pain in quadriceps.
A source stated, “Ideally, the team management would want to see Patidar go back to play the Ranji semifinal and find some form. But that depends on Rahul’s availability. If Rahul is unavailable then he may be asked to stay back with the team. Even if Devdutt Padikkal makes his debut in the last Test, the team management needs an extra batter in the team as a concussion substitute.”
India has already won the series by 3-1 and some other players such as Ravichandran Ashwin, Shubman Gill, etc. who have played during the complete series may also get rested in the fifth test match.
