Here's why KL Rahul is captaining India despite Rohit Sharma in playing XI vs West Australia in 2nd warm-up game

India is currently in Australia for the T20 World Cup. They are engaged in two warm-up games against West Australia. Having won the first game by 13 runs on Monday (October 10), the second game between both teams is underway.

Both teams are scheduled to play at the W.A.C.A. Ground, Perth. The first games saw India win the toss and bat first. The likes of KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, and Ravi Ashwin were given the rest in the first match. While speaking of the second game, Rahul and Ashwin were back in the squad.

On the other hand, Suryakumar Yadav and Chahal were rested along with Virat. However, the second game saw a strange situation. Despite Rohit Sharma playing in the game, it was Rahul who was named the captain of the team.

This decision came as a surprise to many fans who wondered why, with the availability of Rohit, Rahul was leading the side. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) shared a sheet of the playing XI ahead of the start of the match, mentioning Rahul as the captain of the team.

#TeamIndia will bowl first.

A look at our Playing XI for the second practice match against Western Australia. pic.twitter.com/5Wutj8rFYI

— BCCI (@BCCI) October 13, 2022

However, as per the latest developments, the reason Rohit is not captaining the side is that he was not available throughout the first innings for fielding, while Virat was seen doing the fielding. Thus, without the captain not being available throughout all the 20 overs, it would not be ideal.

That is why India has gone with Rahul as the captain of the team. That's what Rohit himself also indicated ahead of the game. He took to Twitter and shared a cryptic message hours ahead of the game. He tweeted, "I’m building a new team. Who’s down? "

I’m building a new team. Who’s down? #OwnTheSquad #collab

— Rohit Sharma (@ImRo45) October 13, 2022

But Rohit will come to bat in the second innings. In the first innings, Western Australia made 162/8 in their 20 overs. D'arcy Short scored 52 off 39, while Nick Hobson made 64 off 41 balls.

For India, Ravi Ashwin picked up three wickets and ended up with a figure of 3/32 in his four overs, and Harshal Patel took 2/27 in his four.