Former Pakistan player Salman Butt feels star India batter KL Rahul won't be able to sustain his career long as a "wicketkeeper batter" with his "lean frame", given that he bats at the top in India's batting line-up and then has to keep wickets for the entire match. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Butt pointed out that some great wicketkeepers like MS Dhoni, Jonny Bairstow and Jos Buttler have much stronger bodies compared to Rahul.
Going into the 2023 Asia Cup and 2023 ODI World Cup, KL Rahul, at present, is India's number-one choice wicketkeeper batsman in absence of Rishabh Pant. Rahul was picked by Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee on Monday (August 21) in India's Asia Cup 2023 squad, but he still has a niggle and will attain full fitness after the second or third match.
"If you see keepers who have batted in the top order, there is one similarity among them. The likes of Kumar Sangakkara, Adam Gilchrist, Jonny Bairstow, Quinton de Kock, Jos Buttler, and even MS Dhoni, for that matter, are very strongly built. When you compare KL Rahul with these guys, he is very lean.
"I think he needs to put muscle in his body. There is a lot of wear and tear when you have keep wickets and then bat in the top order. I have seen Gilchrist put ice packs on his knees after keeping to ease the pressure," Salman Butt remarked on his YouTube channel.
Notably, KL Rahul's career so far has been marred by a lot of injuries. He missed a lot of cricketing action (World Test Championship Final, West Indies tour, Ireland tour) after injuring his thigh while fielding during a Lucknow Super Kings' Indian Premier League 2023 fixture.
KL Rahul underwent surgery in May 2023 and after a month of rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru, the 31-year-old will be making a much-awaited India comeback with 2023 Asia Cup 2023.
Before their epic clash in 2023 ODI World Cup, India will clash against arch-rivals Pakistan in their first Asia Cup 2023 match on September 2 at Sri Lanka's Pallekele International Cricket Stadium.