Opinion| KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant: Two immense talents being wasted

There are certain players who make you go wow, players who make your jaw drop when they are in action on the cricket field and who can win you matches single handed on their day. Indian cricket, over the years, has been fortunate to have these kinds of players who have played a major role in India's emergence as the top team in the white ball format.

The current Indian team has got five such players who, more often than not, have a massive impact on the game. Players like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav and Hardik Pandya, when on song, have the ability to change the course of the game especially in the white ball format. The two other players in that category who unfortunately have not got enough chances are KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant.

Rahul and his gifts

Talking about Rahul, he is one of those players who is always weighed on a different scale because of the extraordinary skills that he possesses. The gift of timing and the sheer ability to play all around the park makes him a must in the ODIs. Now what has been happening is because India has a very solid top three in ODIs, the management has decided that he just can not fit in the eleven and would only be available as a reserve opener.

The reason seems absurd. With the middle order failing regularly, a player like Rahul can be the perfect fit for that number four position. Some might argue that he is effective only when the ball is new which again doesn't provide the answer to his exclusion from the eleven.

These days, with two new balls from each end, the balls remain relatively hard throughout the innings. Also with the second powerplay that allows only four fielders outside the 30-yard-circle, you got to have players can take the attack to the opposition bowlers and that is where the Indian team is facing problems.

Rahul can be the right fit to play that role and to all those who are doubting his ability in times of crisis or tough situations when you got to anchor the innings on a tough pitch, just a reminder that Rahul is an opener in test matches so it is reasonable to believe that the management trusts him to face tough situations.

The curious case of Pant

The curious case of Rishabh Pant is confusing. The team management believes that he is good enough wicketkeeper for the test matches but contradictorily, is unsure of his keeping skills in the One day format or perhaps, because of his inability to advice the spinners as to where to bowl like some other wicketkeepers in the country can do.

Another factor that goes against Pant is that he probably can not assist the captain in regards to the field placements. After all, the captain and the vice-captain, after a combined experience of more than 400 ODIs, still need someone else to absorb the pressure in tough situations while on the field. Talking about pure batting skills, it is hard to find an explanation of why is he missing from the eleven.

If the team management considers IPL performances as the criteria for making the cut into the team like with Rayudu, why is it that Rahul and Pant have not got enough chances despite having a phenomenal IPL last year?

It is unfortunate that Rahul and pant have played a mere 13 and 3 ODIs respectively. With the problems in the batting department, the non-inclusion of these two players may cost India big time.