KL Rahul is back in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons after a lackluster showing behind the stumps against New Zealand in the Champions Trophy. Fans are getting pretty vocal, urging Gautam Gambhir and Rohit Sharma to make a tough call—bench Rahul and give Rishabh Pant a shot, especially since Pant hasn’t played since the England ODIs. But is it really fair to drop Rahul, or is he just being made the scapegoat again?

This isn’t the first time he’s faced the chop too soon, often losing his spot without getting a fair chance. At 32, Rahul has been the ultimate team player, stepping up in various roles—whether it’s opening the batting, playing in the middle order, or keeping wickets across formats. Still, despite his adaptability, he often finds himself out of the lineup after just a couple of poor performances.

Last year, during the home Test series, he was dropped after the first Test against New Zealand. Even after scoring a half-century in the second Test against Bangladesh, it didn’t save him as India struggled with their senior players not performing. In the end, it was Rahul who took the hit, while big names like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma were given more chances.

Looking at Rahul's wicketkeeping in the Champions Trophy and the previous England ODIs, it’s clear he’s not a bad keeper. His performances have been a mixed bag. So far, he’s dropped four catches, including two in the recent match against New Zealand. However, in the game against Bangladesh, he was named Fielder of the Match for taking three catches, even though he missed a stumping chance against Jaker Ali. The stats tell a different story.

India taking on England in ODIs

In the 1st ODI, there were 2 catches taken, 1 stumping, and no catches dropped. In the 2nd ODI, no catches were taken or stumpings made, but there was 1 catch dropped. For the 3rd ODI, there was 1 catch taken, 1 stumping, and 1 catch dropped.

Champions Trophy

Against BAN: Catches made - 3, Stumpings - 0, Catches missed - 0

Against PAK: Catches made - 1, Stumpings - 0, Catches missed - 0

Against NZ: Catches made - 0, Stumpings - 1, Catches missed - 2

Rahul is currently making waves as the wicketkeeper with the most dismissals in the ongoing Champions Trophy, racking up four catches and a stumping, which gives him an average of 1.666 dismissals per innings. His batting stats, however, leave a lot to be desired, mainly because he hasn’t had many chances to shine. In a surprising move, the Indian management has dropped him to No. 6 in the batting order, placing him behind Axar Patel, which is a head-scratcher for someone who kicked off his career as an opener. He did play a vital unbeaten 41 against Bangladesh, but he didn’t get a chance to bat against Pakistan, and his last game against New Zealand was pretty lackluster with just 23 runs.

It would be a mistake to drop him after just one poor performance, especially after moving him down the order. Rahul has proven himself in clutch moments before. During the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, when Rohit Sharma was out for the first Test, Rahul showed great technique on the bouncy pitch in Perth and helped guide young Yashasvi Jaiswal in the second innings to secure a win for India. But when Rohit came back, Rahul was pushed back to the middle order, which messed with his rhythm. When Rohit struggled, Rahul was brought back as an opener, but the constant changes in his role led to a disappointing finish after a strong start to the series.

Once seen as the future star of Indian cricket and a possible successor to Virat Kohli, Rahul still hasn’t reached his full potential. While his batting inconsistency is a worry, the team management hasn’t done him any favors either, often treating him like a backup player instead of a key contributor.

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