The moment KL Rahul was confirmed as a wicketkeeper batter for Team India ahead of the 2-Test series against South Africa, my initial reaction was, What's wrong with Rahul Dravid and Rohit Sharma?

My reaction had nothing to do with how good KL Rahul has been as a wicketkeeper for India in white-ball cricket, but hey, red-ball cricket is a different ballgame altogether. The modern-day age belongs to multitasking, but Team India has taken this to an altogether different level. How can success in one format lead to Rahul becoming the number one contender to keep wickets for India in Test cricket?

It has been a year since Rishabh Pant met with that unfortunate accident near Roorkee. Since then, the southpaw has been out of cricket action and is clawing his way back into competitive cricket after successful operations and rehabs.

However, Team India has certainly missed his presence on the cricket pitch, especially in Test cricket. KL Rahul has done exceptionally well in white-ball cricket, but when it comes to Test cricket, Rishabh Pant is still the number one choice for the team management and skipper Rohit Sharma.

In Pant's absence, Team India phased out old warhorse Wriddhiman Saha, giving opportunity to KS Bharat, who played five Tests for India in 2023, including the 2023 WTC Final. The Andhra keeper did well behind the stumps but hasn't been able to replicate his talent with the bat, thus losing his spot to Rahul.

Another keeper, Ishan Kishan, made his Test debut against the West Indies in July 2023 and was looked at as the number one choice for the South African series. However, the Jharkhand cricketer opted for a break, literally forcing head coach Rahul Dravid to hand over the wicket-keeping duties to KL Rahul.

Given the ultimate teamman KL Rahul is, the Karnataka lad won hearts with his comments about carrying out any role for his team and country.

"Yes, I'll be doing the same role. I'll be wicketkeeping and batting in the middle order. After that, yes, I would be happy to take up that role even in the test matches." Rahul said during the ODI series against South Africa

Test Captain Rohit Sharma and head coach Rahul Dravid cited KL Rahul's exceptional keeping during the ODI World Cup as one of the reasons behind giving the 31-year-old the role of keeper in Test cricket.

“I’m not sure how long he wants to stay, but as of now, he’s quite keen to take that role,” Rohit concluded.

"We do understand it is not something he has done as often (keeping in tests). But he has been doing it regularly in 50-over cricket, and that takes a lot out of your body. He has prepared well over the last five to six months; he has done a lot of keeping,” Dravid said.

Now, both the captain and coach are on the same page with respect to KL Rahul's newly identified role in Team India. However, if one takes a deep look behind the real reason to include KL and not a regular keeper in tests, the reasons are absurd, illogical, and ludicrous, to say the least.

Team India wants batsman KL Rahul first, wicketkeeper later

Before the Centurion Test against South Africa, Rahul's last appearance for India in whites was against Australia at home in February. After a poor string of scores in Nagpur and Delhi, the right-handed batter was left out for the Indore and Ahmedabad Tests.

Since then, India hasn't played a Test match but has played a considerable amount of ODI cricket, where KL Rahul did exceedingly well, both as a batsman and as a keeper.

Since March 2023, Rahul has featured in 24 ODIs, amassing 950 runs at a healthy average of 67.85. This run includes two tons and six half-centuries. Most importantly, all of these runs have come in the middle order and not as an opener. As an ODI wicketkeeper, Rahul took 33 catches and three stumpings and also enjoyed an excellent run in the 2023 ODI World Cup.

It becomes crystal clear that benching someone like KL Rahul wasn't an option at all for the team management going into the South African Test series. With Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill already in the team as openers, having KL Rahul at the top of the order was just not a possibility.

The best option available with the team was to hand over the gloves to KL Rahul and ask him to keep playing red-ball cricket, something he hasn't done even while playing club cricket. The 31-year-old happily agreed, and the rest, they say, is history.

"I've always been open to taking on new roles and accepting whatever role the team wants me to perform. So I'm happy to do whatever the management, coach, and captain ask of me. If that's the role the team sees me in, I'm happy to do that." Rahul said this before the start of the ODI series against South Africa.

With Team India looking to make the most of KL Rahul's form as a batter, they are indeed taking a substantial amount of risk by giving him the role of a wicketkeeper in Tests.

In red-ball cricket, even one mistake can prove to be costly. No matter how good Rahul Dravid was while keeping to the likes of Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh, he never donned a similar role in Test cricket for India.

Two decades later, things have changed, the mindset has changed, and most importantly, Indian cricket is in a position to take more risks and looks at it as an opportunity to reap rewards out of it. KL Rahul looks at the role as an opportunity to play more and more games for India.

"As you play more, you understand that when it's a team game, no position is yours. You have to be able to perform whatever the team requires. You have to be flexible, adjust, and do your best for the team." Rahul had said

With KL Rahul emerging as the number one Test keeper choice in Pant's absence, this comes as bad news for fellow keepers like KS Bharat, Ishan Kishan, and others.

Being a specialist keeper isn't just good enough anymore. Being an MS Dhoni too isn't good enough these days. One needs to score runs across formats and keep well to ensure his spot as a keeper in Test cricket for India. KL Rahul did just that and is now reaping rewards, and the team management is backing him to maintain the balance in the playing XI.

Never have I heard Australia, England, or South Africa go in with the same concept to win a Test series, be it at home or away. That's why Indian cricket is unique in so many ways.

Given the template Team India has been following in ODIs and Tests, don't be surprised if you see KL Rahul donning the role of wicketkeeper batter for the Blues at the 2024 T20 World Cup as well.

Also read: Come on Rohit and Virat, Let's move on

(The author is a cricket expert and has worked as a sports writer for broadcast and multimedia platforms for nearly a decade.)