A surprise replacement emerges as KL Rahul is ruled out of the third test against England
The senior batter of Indian cricket team KL Rahul has been ruled out of the Rajkot Test against England after failing to fully recover from his injury. Rahul was added to the India squad for the remaining three Tests of the five-match series against the Three Lions, but it came with the caveat that his availability would be subject to his fitness. Rahul had complained of pain in his right quadriceps during the first Test match in Hyderabad, and as a result, he was ruled out of the second game, which India won comprehensively in Visakhapatnam.
Devdutt Padikkal, the talented Karnataka left-hander who is enjoying a great first-class season, has been named KL Rahul's replacement for the Rajkot Test.
On Monday, the apex cricket board of India, in a release, said, “KL Rahul, whose availability for the remaining three Tests was subject to fitness, has been ruled out of the third Test against England in Rajkot. Mr. Rahul has reached 90 percent of match fitness and is progressing well under the supervision of the BCCI Medical Team.”
The release added, “He will continue his recovery process at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru to be completely match-fit for the fourth and fifth Tests. The Men’s Selection Committee named Devdutt Padikkal as KL Rahul’s replacement for the third Test.”