Former Indian national cricket team wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik has backed star batsman KL Rahul to act as the team’s long-term opener in Test cricket.

Dinesh Karthik believes KL Rahul should be judged on his excellent performances, he has had success in overseas matches and deserves a longer rope as an opener.

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KL Rahul has shone in BGT 2024-25

Rahul, 32, has emerged as one of the best batsmen for the Indian team in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. He has looked the most settled in the middle among all the batsmen and has dealt with the threat of the dangerous Australian pacers quite well.

KL Rahul got the chance to open the innings for India in the ongoing series after impressing everyone with his heroics in the Perth Test match.

In the absence of Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul did a fantastic job of opening the innings with Yashasvi Jaiswal and registered scores of 26 and 77. He failed in the pink ball Test match by registering scores of 37 and 7. However, he recovered in the Gabba Test and played a marvelous knock of 84 runs in the first innings.

As seniors Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have been going through a rough patch, Rahul has shouldered the responsibility of leading the Indian batting unit very well, and his form will be crucial for the team heading into the final two Test matches of the five. series of matches.

“I think in KL Rahul we have the first goal that India needs” – Dinesh Karthik

Speaking on Cricbuzz, Dinesh Karthik said that the Indian team management should back KL Rahul even after he fails in a series as he has great potential to serve as the team’s long-term opener.

“I think in KL Rahul we have the first match that India needs. I hope you continue to support it. If, within the next year, there is a series where you have a couple of low scores, I hope people don’t have a bad memory. We need to appreciate what he has done and what he is doing today. That matters a lot. People often forget that many Test cricketers are judged by what they do overseas. And Rahul has been as good as anyone who has played for the country over a long period.”

“People always complain about his consistency” – Dinesh Karthik

Rahul has participated in 56 Test matches for the Indian national cricket team and has scored 3216 runs at an average of 34.58. His numbers don’t really represent his true potential and many cricket legends have opined that a player of Rahul’s caliber should average around 50 in Test cricket.

Meanwhile, Dinesh Karthik admitted that Rahul is not among the most consistent players and said that he is a much better player than his average shows, especially in overseas conditions.

“People always complain about his consistency; I don’t want to use that word. But he takes care of it. His average proves it. But he’s much better than that. He is someone who is much, much better than that.

“But if you take any Indian team planning to go abroad, he will be one of the first names on that list because you know exactly what you are going to get from him,” he added.