Gautam Gambhir believes KL Rahul is an ideal replacement for MS Dhoni

Former Indian batsman Gautam Gambhir has picked KL Rahul as the ideal replacement for MS Dhoni in the national team. Gambhir, who has recently been quite vocal about the international future of former Indian captain Dhoni, reckons Rahul has the potential to fill in the shoes of the Chennai Super Kings ace.

Speaking on the Star Sports show ‘Cricket Connected’, Gambhir explained how Dhoni's future with the Indian team will be in doubt if IPL 2020 gets cancelled amidst the coronavirus crisis. The southpaw thinks that a player cannot be drafted into the playing XI straightaway after a gap of more than a year.

"If the IPL does not happen this year, then it will become very difficult for MS Dhoni to make a comeback... On what basis can he be selected since he's not been playing for the last one or one and a half years."

Gambhir picked an in-form Rahul to replace Dhoni in the squad as the specialist wicket-keeper, even ahead of the management-backed Rishabh Pant. He cited Rahul's versatility in the batting order as a big plus for the squad and termed the 27-year-old as a 'utility player' in the current scheme of things.

"The apt replacement for Dhoni could be KL Rahul. Ever since he has donned the keeper's gloves in white-ball cricket, I've seen his performance, both batting and keeping. Obviously his keeping is not as good as Dhoni's, but if you are looking at T20 cricket, Rahul's a utility player, can keep and bat at No. 3 or 4."

As far as Gambhir's views on Dhoni's retirement are concerned, the former batsman stated that the veteran's chances are growing dimmer by the day with IPL facing an unprecedented cancellation or postponement due to the coronavirus outbreak.

"If the IPL does not happen, then MS Dhoni's chances for a comeback look dim. Ultimately, you are representing India, so whoever dishes out the best performance and can win the match for India should play for the team. As far as his retirement plans go by, that's his personal choice."

Dhoni's last international outing was against New Zealand in the semi-finals of the 2019 World Cup

Rahul's form with the bat has been nothing but phenomenal ever since he took the wicket-keeping responsibilities from Pant. This makes things tougher for Dhoni, who last represented India during their 2019 World Cup semi-final defeat against New Zealand in England and Wales.