Virat Kohli Was Missed at Johannesburg – Gautam Gambhir Suggests KL Rahul to be More Aggressive as Captain

Ind vs SA: Following the loss at Johannesburg, ex-India opener Gautam Gambhir reckoned that the side missed Virat Kohli and pointed that stand-in skipper KL Rahul was not too aggressive. 

Cape Town: After squandering a 1-0 lead in the ongoing three-match Test series at Johannesburg, India would get ready to take on South Africa in the third and final Test at Cape Town hoping to script history by winning their first-ever Test series on African soil. Following the loss at Johannesburg, ex-India opener Gautam Gambhir reckoned that the side missed Virat Kohli and pointed that stand-in skipper KL Rahul was not too aggressive.

“We definitely missed Virat Kohli the batsman. Steve Smith, Joe Root, Kane Williamson, Rohit Sharma, these are the type of batters you miss. And it is difficult to find their replacement, no matter what form they are in, because the expectation remains that they will score those big runs. But Kohli the captain, we missed him as well because he is so experienced and things turn simpler for experienced captains because they have been around for long,” he said on Star Sports.

Gambhir also reckoned that Rahul will improve with time. The ex-India opener cited examples where Rahul as a leader could have been more aggressive with his field placings.

“But KL Rahul, the more time he spends, the better he will learn, but the faster he learns the better it is. This is not like ODI or T20I captaincy, which is far easier because you don’t have to focus much on field placements. In Test cricket you need to buy the wickets, sometimes even gamble with your choices. Like in the case of Bavuma, had he placed three slips instead of keeping one at the cover and tempt him into playing the drive maybe there could have been an opportunity for caught behind. But he kept a deep point which was a defensive mindset and it is something that he should be told about. You need to be an aggressive captain, not by attitude, but with your field placements,” he explained.