“If he bats at No. 6 or 7, he ends up scoring 6 or 7” - Former opener blasts Indian team management for batting order in IND vs ENG 2025 ODIs

Former opening batter Krishnamachari Srikkanth has accused the Indian team management of misusing KL Rahul's skill set in the ongoing ODI series against England. The wicketkeeper-batter was deployed at No. 6 in the two matches so far and struggled to make an impression.

KL Rahul retained his place in the playing XI as the first-choice wicketkeeper, shrugging off competition from fellow glovesman Rishabh Pant. However, the Karnataka batter was demoted in the batting order, with the left-handed Axar Patel preferred at No. 5 to maintain the right-left combination.

In his newfound role, Rahul has come out to bat after the top and the middle order have done the bulk of the scoring. However, he failed to finish the twin run chases, perishing for just 2 and 10 in the first and the second ODIs, respectively.

Srikkanth opined that KL Rahul was being treated unfairly by the team management. In a video on his YouTube channel 'Cheeky Cheeka,' Srikkanth said (via Hindustan Times)

"Shreyas Iyer is in good form, which is a positive for India. But I feel for KL Rahul, it’s very unfortunate. Yes, Axar Patel is scoring 30s and 40s, but what they are doing with KL Rahul is not fair. Look at his record, he has excelled at No. 5, with a brilliant record. I don’t know what the team management is thinking regarding his position. If he bats at No. 6 or 7, he ends up scoring 6 or 7. It’s unfair."

Srikkanth added that Rahul's recent poor set of knocks might lead to his ousting from the playing XI altogether.

"Now, what you’ve done is you’ve sidelined Rishabh Pant as well. One of them has to play. I have a feeling Pant will feature in the third ODI and then in the Champions Trophy too. Rahul might end up warming the bench again," he said.

KL Rahul has played at No. 6 in ODIs only four times. Prior to the England series, he had to don a similar role during the tour of Sri Lanka in 2024, where the likes of Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, and Shivam Dube were promoted in the batting order.

The wicketkeeper-batter has not batted at his trademark No. 5 position since the 2023 ODI World Cup. During the tour of South Africa in late 2023, where he led the team, he batted at No. 4.

"Hey, Gambhir, what you are doing is not right" - Srikkanth on Team India's obsession with left-hand-right- hand combination

Left-handed batters have been prioritized in every section of the batting unit ever since Gautam Gambhir took over as head coach, especially in white-ball cricket. Players like Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, and Shivam Dube played a crucial role in the recent T20I series win against England, while Axar Patel has made the most of his promotion in the ODIs.

In the same video, Srikkanth said:

"Hey, Gambhir, what you are doing is not right. Yes, depending on the situation, India can send Axar at No. 5, but it cannot be a consistent strategy. If you keep making such changes, you know what will happen—there will be a crucial match where everything falls apart. That’s what worries me. You can’t justify it by talking about the left-right combination. Does that mean you don’t care about a left-right combination in the top four? Why does it only matter at No. 5?"

The third and final ODI between India and England is scheduled to be held at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Wednesday, February 12. India have already sealed the series by winning the first two matches.