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New vice-captain Rahul hints of five-bowlers tactic, discusses 'difficult decision' over Rahane

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India’s new vice-captain KL Rahul has given a strong hint on what would the playing XI for the first Test of the series against South Africa look like as he has backed their long-standing commitment to the idea of playing five bowlers. He spoke highly of the five-bowler tactics and counted the successes they have had in the past few years.

He also rated the tactic highly for the cushion of workload management it provides to the side and did all but confirm about playing an extra seamer in the Tests against the Proteas.

"Every team wants to pick up 20 wickets to win Test match. We have used that tactic and it has helped us in every Test match that we have played away," Rahul said.

"Workload also becomes slightly easier to manage with five bowlers and when you have that kind of quality (in Indian ranks), I think, we might as well use it.”

Rahul was promoted to vice-captaincy for the tour replacing Ajinkya Rahane, who has gone out of favour due to a prolonged slump with the bat. His position in the squad was threatened after the heroic arrival of Shreyas Iyer and the perpetual presence of Hanuma Vihari.

If the men in blue will stick to the five-bowlers combination as Rahul has suggested, the team management will have to make tough choices in terms of team selection and pick one among Iyer, who grabbed the opportunities against New Zealand with both hands and Vihari, who has been an undisclosed overseas specialist.

"It is a very difficult decision to make obviously. Speaking about Ajinkya, he has been an important member of the Test team, played very, very crucial knocks in his career," Rahul was waxed eloquent about his senior teammate.

 "In the last 15-18 months, he has played some crucial knocks, that partnership with Pujara at Lord's, was important for us in winning the Test match. Shreyas obviously has taken his chances and got a brilliant hundred (along with a fifty) in Kanpur and he is very exciting. Hanuma has done the same for us, so it's a tough decision," Rahul said

"We will start having a chat today or tomorrow and you will get to know in a couple of days time," he added.

India have never won a Test series in South Africa and the Virat Kohli-led side have achieved many unprecedented triumphs in the longest format in the last few years and the upcoming series will be yet another opportunity for the number one ranked side in the format. 

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Rahul, Mayank bank on Dravid's experience for 'best preparation' against Proteas challenge

Team India are short of match practice as they head into a high-stake Test series against South Africa, but their openers Mayank Agarwal and KL Rahul are relying on the experience and inputs from their head coach Rahul Dravid, who has had a fair share of experience of playing in the rainbow nation. Rahul has put his faith in the expertise of Dravid and said that the veteran of 164 Tests is putting his best forward to help players get the best possible preparation for the series. Rahul also emphasized Mayank Agarwal’s long term association and bonhomie with Dravid, who was heading India A setup while the opener was doing the hard yards to earn a place in the India Test side and said that his presence has been a massive boost for the squad before the tour. "Having Rahul Dravid with us this time is very helpful. He has played a lot of cricket here, he has scored a lot of runs. In the three or four days of training that we have had, he has had a lot of experiences to share and he is really helping us prepare the best we can. That's a huge boost for us," Rahul said. "I think you've [Mayank Agarwal] had a great experience with him playing in India As and you've played a lot of cricket under him," Rahul added. Mayank highlighted Dravid’s role in helping one in “understanding your game, understanding yourself and understanding your mind space” while playing at the highest level. He said that Dravid has also put efforts to prepare players for stiff challenges and the story has not been any different in South Africa where they have been involved in gruelling practice sessions despite not playing any competitive cricket. "For me personally, he has just been a person who talks about understanding your game, understanding yourself and understanding your mind space. If you can work that out, sort that out then more often than not you are giving yourself the best possible chance to succeed. Knowing him, he is a man who really thrives and puts the onus on good, strong preparation. We've had quality sessions over here [South Africa] and we are really looking forward to playing the Test match," Mayank said. India will start their campaign in South Africa on December 26 followed by two Tests and three-match long ODI series.