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India wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul got picked in the 18-member squad that will tour England for a five-match Test series that is set to commence from June 20. It will be quite an important series for both the sides as it will mark the beginning of the new World Test Championship (WTC) cycle.
KL Rahul may feature for India A in the second Test against England Lions
Despite not being able to take the Delhi Capitals (DC) to the playoffs in the ongoing IPL season, Rahul performed well with the bat throughout the season and even finished as the side's top run-getter with 539 runs in 13 matches. Following a rather disappointing campaign where DC finished on the fifth place on the IPL standings, Rahul has reportedly made himself available for India A's second unofficial Test against the England Lions.
The second match of the Test series is set to be played in Northampton from June 6. According to a report by the Indian Express, Rahul has told the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) that he wants to play in the match.
"He will be flying on Monday and will be playing a second unofficial test 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," the Indian Express quoted a source as saying.
In a recent interview with former England captain Nasser Hussain, Rahul talked about his love for red-ball cricket, stating that he grew up watching Test matches and that on some occasions, he even woke up at five in the morning to watch Tests that got broadcasted live from Australia.
"I love red ball cricket. I mean you can't take that away from me or anyone who's part of that Indian team. Everyone that I've spoken to on that Indian team, we're all on the same page as to Test cricket is number one for us. We love playing Test cricket and that hasn't changed for me," Rahul told Sky Sports.
"I grew up watching Test cricket. I grew up watching you guys play for England. I used to wake up at five in the morning and watch Test cricket in Australia with my father. He loved watching cricket as well," he added.
India squad for England Tests: Shubman Gill (C), Rishabh Pant (VC & WK), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Karun Nair, Nitish Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd. Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav.
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