Senior India batter KL Rahul is set to play the second unofficial Test against England Lions, slated to begin on June 6. According to reports, Rahul will be leaving India on Monday. After Delhi Capitals failed to qualify for the playoffs, the cricketer reached out to BCCI officials, expressing his interest in playing the second unofficial Test at the County Ground in Northampton.
“He will be flying on Monday and will be playing a second warm up game with the India A side. As he is part of the senior men’s team, which will be playing five Test matches in the series, these matches will give him game time and match practice,” a source in the BCCI informed Indian Express.
Notably, Rahul will be a vital cog in the Indian side for the upcoming five-match England series. After Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli announced retirement from Test cricket, the keeper-batter is the senior-most member in the batting department and will have to take the responsibility to keep the scoreboard ticking. He had a decent season in Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, scoring 255 runs in five matches at an average of 30.66.
Meanwhile, it is unclear whether Rahul will be batting at the middle order or in the middle in the England series. In case Abhimanyu Easwaran does well in the first unofficial Test, the Bengal opener can pair with Yashasvi Jaiswal and Rahul can fit in at number six. Or else, Rahul will be opening the innings, as he did on a few occasions in Australia.
Several of India’s 18-member Test squad are featuring in the first unofficial Test in Canterbury. The list includes the likes of Easwaran, Jaiswal, Karun Nair, Nitish Kumar Reddy and Shadul Thakur. The match holds massive importance for Shardul and Nitish, as only one of them can make it to the playing XI in the first Test on June 20.