Sunil Gavaskar bats for Rishabh Pant's inclusion over KL Rahul in the upcoming T20 World Cup squad

Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar has backed Rishabh Pant to be included in the upcoming T20 World Cup, which is scheduled to take place in June this year in the USA and West Indies.

Sanju Samson and Jitesh Sharma were recently chosen by the selectors to be the two wicketkeeper-batters in India's 16-player team for the forthcoming Twenty20 International Series against Afghanistan. Rahul was overlooked, while Pant was not available for selection because he has not yet fully recovered from his injury.

In a conversation on the Star Sports programme "Game Plan," Gavaskar was asked if he thought KL Rahul would be a middle-order hitter and wicketkeeper in the 2024 T20 World Cup.

"I see him (Rahul) as a wicketkeeper as well, but I will say one thing before that: if Rishabh Pant is fit on even one leg, he should come into the team because he is a game-changer in every format. If I am the selector, I will put his name first," he responded.

In 68 T20I innings, Rahul has amassed 2,265 runs at a great average of 37.75 and an even more outstanding strike rate of 139.12. He has never batted lower than No. 4 in T20Is; therefore, if he wants to be included in India's T20 World Cup squad, he may need to demonstrate his skills lower down the order in the IPL in 2024.

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