File image of KL Rahul.© BCCI/Sportzpics
Former India cricketer Manoj Tiwary has batted for the inclusion of a domestic run-scoring machine in the India setup. Following India's dramatic collapse to 46 all out in the first Test against New Zealand, Tiwary has questioned KL Rahul's spot in the India side. Raising the example of Sarfaraz Khan's success for India, Tiwary has suggested that India should try Abhimanyu Easwaran in the India playing XI in the near future. Easwaran has slammed four centuries in his last four first-class games.
Tiwary pointed out Rahul's poor average in Test cricket, and recommended Easwaran's name.
"The numbers that you showed are definitely disappointing, if you play 91 innings, and have an average of 33.98. India have a lot of batters who are performing well on a consistent basis, even in domestic cricket," said Tiwary, speaking on the Cricbuzz YouTube channel.
"You need performances on a consistent basis, which should be checked in 1:3 ratio," said Tiwary.
Tiwary was himself perhaps a victim of this during his career, having been dropped immediately after scoring an ODI hundred for India.
Tiwary stated that if Sarfaraz could perform at No. 4, having been promoted up the order, Easwaran can also be given a shot in the middle order despite being a designated opener in domestic cricket.
"If you look at his (Easwaran's) numbers, there were hardly any innings in the last few matches he played where he did not score a century. So bring him in, and try him as a middle-order batter, given that he is in form. Why not?" further said Tiwary.
Easwaran, who Tiwary has captained previously while playing for Bengal, recently notched up a stunning 191 for Rest of India against Mumbai in the Irani Cup 2024.
Easwaran has been a part of the India setup before, travelling as a standby player.