Manoj Tiwary backs Abhimanyu Easwaran to replace KL Rahul in India Test squad

Senior India batter KL Rahul failed to make the most of the opportunity, scoring only 12 runs in the first Test against New Zealand in Bengaluru. Captain Rohit Sharma backed him to do well, as he did in South Africa, but the middle order batter struggled heavily against quality pace bowling and following which, his spot in the playing XI is once again under the scanner. As per former cricketer Manoj Tiwary, there are plenty of batters in domestic cricket who have done well in recent times and one of them could replace Rahul in the Test squad.

He particularly named Bengal batter Abhimanyu Easwaran, who has been in the scheme of things for quite some time but has never been considered for the Test cap. The 29-year-old recently hit back-to-back centuries in the Duleep Trophy, another one in the Irani Cup and even in the opening round of the Ranji Trophy against Uttar Pradesh. In total, he hit back-to-back four centuries and keeping that in mind, Tiwary backed Easwaran to replace Rahul.

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“If you play 91 innings, and have an average of 33.98… India have a lot of batters who are performing well consistently, even in domestic cricket, then why not (rethink KL Rahul’s spot)?” Tiwary told Cricbuzz.

“If in a Test match, you can get a performance out of Sarfaraz by sending him at No. 4… I feel Abhimanyu Easwaran is a player, whom we have definitely given that ‘opener’ tag, and he is a specialist opener, but if you look at his numbers, there were hardly any innings in the last few matches he played where he did not score a century. So, bring him in, and try him as a middle-order batter, given that he is in form. Why not?” he added.

Selectors will keep backing Rahul: Tiwary

Even after rooting for Easwaran, Tiwary understands that the Indian team management will keep backing Rahul as he has the experience and the technique to succeed in red-ball cricket. However, he once again noted that the selectors should keep an eye on the domestic players as well. 

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“But again, as much as I have understood, they (the selectors) will keep backing Rahul because he has the experience and is a technically sound batter. But then you also need performances, consistently, which should be checked in a 1:3 ratio. In this age of competition, if you can’t score a ton in three innings… there are a lot of players waiting in the wings, hoping for an opportunity and are banging on the selectors’ doors,” the former Bengal cricketer said.