KL Rahul would have been told that if he is captain, he is next in line: Irfan Pathan

Team India is ready to take on South Africa in a five-match T20I series slated to start on June 9 (Tuesday). The Men in Blue will be under the new leadership of KL Rahul with several key players including permanent skipper Rohit Sharma, and Virat Kohli rested to manage the workload.

As the series is about to begin, former Indian cricketers including Suresh Raina and Irfan Pathan have given their opinion on the decision to appoint Rahul as team India skipper and head coach Rahul Dravid’s role in bringing clarity amongst the players in the camp.

Players needed a leader like KL Rahul: Suresh Raina

The former Indian cricketer Suresh Raina feels that opting for Rahul as team India captain was a good choice as the selected players need a skipper like Rahul to bring calmness to the camp.

“He has looked very calm and composed as a captain in recent times and the players selected need a leader like KL Rahul. There is Kuldeep (Yadav) and Chahal, both will play together,” Raina was quoted by News18.

“There are new fast bowlers – Umran Malik, the way he has bowled, and then Arshdeep. Both Rishabh Pant and Dinesh Karthik, whose performance has been very good in the IPL, will also be there. So I feel his (Rahul’s) presence will bring calmness and the South African players are also good, so it will be a very good contest,” he added.

Meanwhile, Irfan Pathan believes that KL  would have already been briefed about the team composition and other things as head coach Dravid always prioritizes clarity of roles.

“It is not that the earlier coaches have not done that, Ravi Shastri was there and Virat Kohli was captaining, but Dravid will take it one step ahead. I have full belief the communication would have happened and KL Rahul would have been told that if he is the captain, it means he is the next in line,” Pathan added.