Former India selector Saba Karim expressed huge disappointment at KL Rahul’s failure in the second innings of the Guwahati Test against South Africa. Being critical of the experienced batter, he added that the 33-year-old is yet to realize his full potential despite having played international cricket for a number of years. Ad India find themselves staring at a 2-0 series loss after Day 4 of the second Test against South Africa at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati on Tuesday, November 25. Set a massive target of 549, the hosts went to stumps at 27-2 after 15. 5 overs, with both openers back in the hut. Yashasvi Jaiswal was dismissed for 13 and Rahul for six. During a discussion on ESPNcricinfo, Karim reflected on yet another poor Test series for Rahul and commented that he has failed to live up to the expectations despite being a senior member of the team. The former India keeper said: Ad Trending “Disappointing from KL Rahul, as the most experienced batter in the line-up, more so with India looking to survive this Test match. It was so important for KL Rahul to stay at the crease. He has enough potential and enough experience to do so. He has played on this kind of track before with some great numbers.” Ad The 58-year-old added that he expected Rahul to shoulder a lot more responsibility in the Test team following the exits of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Lamenting the lack of consistency from the Karnataka star, he said: “Somehow, when you want to rely on KL Rahul, that’s the time when he disappoints. I really felt that, post the Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma era in this Test side, it is KL Rahul who will really flourish and take up the responsibility of being the best batter in the line-up. Ad “Unfortunately, scores have been as sporadic as they were when Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma were there in the Test side. So, that transition from being an inconsistent run-getter to a very reliable and more consistent performer has still not taken place,” Karim continued. In four innings in the ongoing two-match Test series against South Africa, Rahul has scored 68 runs at an average of 17, with a best of 39. Ad “He left a big gap” Saba Karim analyzes KL Rahul’s dismissal on Day 4 of 2nd IND vs SA 2025 Test Rahul was cleaned up by Simon Harmer with a peach on Day 4 in Guwahati. Karim, however, reckoned that the Indian opener helped the bowler by playing a poor stroke. Reflecting on the crucial dismissal, he commented: Ad “He could have done better just by defending, instead of trying to play it on the one side. The moment you do so, without getting to the pitch of the ball on a spinning delivery, especially on track like this, you open up so many opportunities for the ball to squeeze in. That’s what happened, because he left a big gap between bat and pad, and that was enough for Simon Harmer to castle him.” At stumps on Day 4 in Guwahati, Sai Sudharsan was batting on two and Kuldeep Yadav on four. While a win is out of the equation for the hosts, they can salvage some pride by drawing the contest. × Feedback Why did you not like this content? Clickbait / Misleading Factually Incorrect Hateful or Abusive Baseless Opinion Too Many Ads Other Was this article helpful? Thank You for feedback Follow IPL Auction 2025 Live Updates, News & Biddings at Sportskeeda. Get the fastest updates on Mega-Auction and cricket news Edited by Renin Wilben Albert.
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