IND vs SA | KL Rahul’s captaincy will be monitored: Reports

In the absence of senior players like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, KL Rahul will lead Team India against South Africa in a five-match T20I series starting on June 9.

There was a mixed reaction to Rahul's captaincy in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022. He led the Lucknow Super Giants to the playoffs but failed to take his team to the finals. However, according to Inside Sport, his captaincy will be closely monitored by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) selectors during the series.

KL Rahul was named as captain of India's T20I squad against South Africa, and Rishabh Pant will be his deputy. Rahul captained India in South Africa and lost all three ODIs. Hence, the Karnataka Opener will be under the spotlight in the T20I series.

"It will be a great opportunity for KL. The only senior around him will be Bhuvneshwar, and it will be the best test for him as a potential Indian captain. I won't say he will be under pressure, but certainly, he will be closely monitored," a member of the selection committee said to Insidesport.

It will be a great opportunity to prove him as a future Team India skipper. The 30-year-old didn't impress with his captaincy skills in South Africa. However, he looked good as the captain of the Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL 2022. But captaining the country brings a different pressure.

"See, in South Africa tour, it was a new job for him. It's not the same as leading an IPL franchise. Leading comes with immense pressure. He made some mistakes, but it was also about learning. The T20 series is where he will be benchmarked. I am sure he will do an excellent job," the insider added.

India's T20I squad: KL Rahul (Captain), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan, Deepak Hooda, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (vice-captain)(wk), Dinesh Karthik (wk), Hardik Pandya, Venkatesh Iyer, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik