IPL 2019: Why Kings XI Punjab should relieve KL Rahul of his wicket-keeping duties
If we look at the IPL squads of the 2018 season, Kings XI Punjab were the only team that had a part-time wicketkeeper doing full-time duty behind the stumps. Every other IPL squad had a full-time wicket-keeper, and they reaped the benefits of that.
Even though K L Rahul did not perform too shabbily behind the stumps, KXIP would have to seriously consider having a full-time wicket-keeper for their 2019 IPL season. The reasons for that are two-fold.
For one thing, since Rahul is not a regular wicket-keeper, he is bound to make some mistakes at crucial moments which may cost the team dearly.
Secondly, Rahul is one of the mainstays of the KXIP batting lineup. Any fumbles he makes behind the stumps may not only harm his team, but could also dent his confidence, and KXIP can't afford that.
The management needs to free him from the burden of wicket-keeping so that he can concentrate on his primary job – scoring runs for the team.
That said, it can be argued that he performed his job admirably – both in front of and behind the stumps – in the previous season. Rahul scored 659 runs in the season at a staggering average of almost 55.
So why change a winning formula? After all, there are many other part-time wicket-keepers who went on to blossom into batting greats, at both the domestic and international level.
This, however, is a flawed argument. The fact of the matter is that unlike those other wicket-keeper batsmen, Rahul happens to keep wickets only in the IPL. It’s only for those 50 days or so that he is asked to hone an entirely different set of skills; skills that he does not have the requirement of at any other time of the year for any other team that he plays.
Just because he did well last season does not mean he needs to be saddled with the twin responsibilities over and over again.
If Rahul is freed of the wicket-keeping responsibility and the worries of dropped catches or missed stumpings, he will be able to focus solely on his batting. He is a brilliant fielder in the outfield, anyway.
For the full-time wicket-keeping job, KXIP could try to get one of the many wicket-keepers in India who have been in the national reckoning for some time and are still available. Alternatively, they could also target those who are playing for different state teams in the Ranji Trophy but are yet to play in the IPL.