Rahul, Rahane getting raw deal: Ganguly

New Delhi, July 18 

Former India captain Sourav Ganguly has slammed the Indian team management for not “looking after” KL Rahul and Ajinkya Rahane, two of its best batsmen. Ganguly feels constant experimentation in the middle-order is hurting the “top-heavy” side, and the two batsmen aren’t getting enough opportunities.

“India are too top heavy at the moment. If your top-order doesn’t get runs, then you are struggling. It is a big issue. You have to have quality like England,” Ganguly said after India’s loss in the deciding ODI in Leeds on Tuesday. “Eyes closed, I will have Rahul at No. 4. Your top-four have to be the best players and you got to persist with them. Go and tell Rahul ‘we will give you 15 games’. Just go and play.” 

“They (the team management) are not giving enough opportunities at the moment. Rahul got a fantastic hundred at Manchester, and here he was dropped. You won’t be able to produce players like that. Same goes for Rahane.

“These are your two best batsmen. You have to have solid No. 4 and 5. Then decide between Dinesh Karthik and MS Dhoni at 6 and Hardik Pandya at 7,” said the former skipper.

Rahane has been shunted out of the ODI squad, but he remains a key member of the Test side. “I think Rahane and Rahul are not being looked after properly. I am not saying it is deliberate but either of the two has to be played at No. 4 because it (a fragile middle) puts too much pressure on Rohit and Virat Kohli,” said Ganguly. “In South Africa, India did well because Kohli got three hundreds. If he doesn’t get a hundred, you will have issues.”      

‘Dhoni needs to raise his game, look beyond Raina’ 

Ganguly said if Dhoni was India’s choice for the 2019 World Cup, then he needed to step up his game. “If Dhoni has to play, he has to get in at a time where he can keep hitting. If he comes in around the 24-25th over and has to build the innings, he’s struggling,” said Ganguly. “He may turn it around as he has been a great player but he isn’t turning it around enough at the moment and this has been going on for more than a year.” 

Ganguly wasn’t happy with Suresh Raina either. “With all due respect, I think there are better players around. He has played for a long period of time. He has got runs in ODIs, not many overseas, but India need to look ahead,” said Ganguly.  — PTI