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The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) seems to have had a change of heart over KL Rahul's selection for the ODI series against England. Rahul had reportedly sought a break from the BCCI from the England assignment, which the board agreed to as well. But, fresh development on the matter suggests that the board has now asked Rahul to be available for England ODIs, with the selection committee, headed by Ajit Agarkar, keen to add him to the roster.
"The selectors initially decided to rest Rahul, who plays in the middle order and is a wicketkeeper in the ODIs, from the entire white-ball series against England at home. However, they had a rethink and the BCCI has now asked him to play in the ODI series so that he gains some match practice ahead of the Champions Trophy in February," the Times of India quoted a source as saying.
While the high-profile India batting crumbled in the Test series in Australia, Rahul was among the few batters who got runs. He was the third-highest run-getter for India with 276 runs in 10 innings at an average of 30.66.
Though ahead in the pecking order, Rahul is fighting for the wicketkeeper batter's slot in the Champions Trophy squad alongside Rishabh Pant and Sanju Samson. While he seemed to be a certain pick for the selectors in the Champions Trophy squad, a twist seems to have come in the selectors' mind, as they now want to see him perform against England in the ODI series.
As per a report in Cricbuzz, the board has also sought an extension from the ICC over the Champions Trophy squad announcement. The ICC had set January 12 as the deadline for the provisional squad announcement, but it doesn't look like the board would be able to announce the roster by then.
Several names like Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Sanju Samson, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy, etc. are in the running for Champions Trophy selection but absolute clarity on the topic is still missing.