Over the last couple of months, the Karnataka batsman has been made to experience a roller coaster ride as far as his place in the India ODI squad is concerned.
KL Rahul's addition to the Board President's XI squad that will play New Zealand in two warm-up games starting here on Tuesday, gives the discarded India batsman an opportunity to reclaim his spot in the national side.
Over the last couple of months, the Karnataka batsman has been made to experience a roller coaster ride as far as his place in the India ODI squad is concerned.
From being termed "too good a player to sit out" by chairman of selectors MSK Prasad on August 14 to being made to 'sit out' of the playing XI after the 4th ODI against Sri Lanka in Colombo on August 31, to then being made to 'sit out' of the squad itself for the New Zealand series on October 14, Rahul's ODI career has gone on a dramatic downward spiral.
The five wise men of Indian cricket prefer having the combo of Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma at the top than Rahul and Sharma. And, with Hardik Pandya making all the right noises during his limited opportunities at No. 4 – a spot that Prasad reserved for Rahul during the Sri Lanka series – that position too seems to be slipping out of his hands rather quickly.
The two warm-up games against the Black Caps gives the 25-year-old a chance arrest that slide to an extent and remain in the selectors' radar with a good show.
Another man who will be itching to remain in that radar is Shreyas Iyer, who has been desperate for a long time for an elusive maiden India call-up.
The Mumbai batsman, who will lead the Board President's side, has scored a considerable volume of runs in the past month for India A, most notably the unbeaten 140 against South Africa A to win his team the Tri-Series in Pretoria.
The closest he has come to an international debut is being drafted into India Test squad for the final Test against Australia earlier this year as replacement for the injured Virat Kohli.
He, however, wasn't included in the XI, and was then kept out of the set-up.
"I'm tired of this question, to be honest," Iyer said here on Monday when asked about not being considered by the selectors. "I think I've given all my answers previously. Again and again I don't want to talk over it.
"My job is to keep performing. I won't be thinking what the selectors are thinking at all," he added.
INDIA A SQUAD
Shreyas Iyer (C), Prithvi Shaw, Shivam Chaudhary, Karun Nair, Gurkeerat Mann, Milind Kumar, Rishabh Pant (WK), Shahbaz Nadeem, Karn Sharma, Dhawal Kulkarni, Jaydev Unadkat, Avesh Khan, KL Rahul
Note: KL Rahul and Karn Sharma were added to the squad on Monday, with the injured Rahul Chahar being left out
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