India shouldn't lay rank turner for Afghanistan Test keeping Rashid Khan in mind: Lalchand Rajput

New Delhi, June 7: Former India cricketer and team manager Lalchand Rajput has a word of caution for the Team India ahead of the one-off Test against Afghanistan in Bengaluru.

India will host Afghanistan in their maiden Test match, starting June 14, at iconic M Chinnaswamy Stadium. Ajinkya Rahane will be leading them in the absence of their batting mainstay and skipper Virat Kohli, who is nursing a shoulder injury.

Rashid Khan ready for test of patience against India

Rajput, who has been a coach of the Afghan national side from 2016 to 2017, in an interview with Times of India has warned the hosts against preparing rank turners because the visitors are also having some quality spinners in their camp.

Speaking particularly about Afghan spin sensation Rashid Khan, who picked up 21 wickets in the Indian Premier League 2018 for his franchise Sunrisers Hyderabad, Rajput said the 19-year-old could prove to be a bane for Indian batsmen if BCCI lays a turning track.

"On a turning wicket, Rashid will be dangerous. If we give Afghanistan a turning wicket, we'll perish, because they have at least three good spinners," Rajput, who's now the head coach of Zimbabwe, told TOI.

Afghanistan has picked as many as five spinners - Khan, Rehman (off-spinner), Mohammad Nabi (off-spinner), Zahir Khan (chinaman), and left-arm spinner Amir Hamza - for the one-off Test against Team India.

As per the former India opener, India should go with a seeming track instead of in the Bengaluru test for the visitors' pace attack isn't that good and that would give India a chance to wrap up the game within three days.

"Their fast bowling attack is comparatively much weaker. The best option for India is to go for a 'green top' and unleash their pacers, who can then even finish off the match inside three days," felt Rajput.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah have been rested by the BCCI for the one-off Test and included Mohammad Shami, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Shardul Thakur and Hardik Pandya for this match.

Speaking about how to counter Rashid, who has led Afghanistan to their first-ever T20I series win over Bangladesh in the ongoing bilateral series in Dehradun, Rajput has advised Indian batsmen to defend the leg-spinner and take singles against him.

"It's very simple. If you try to hit him, you'll end up giving away your wicket. To negotiate him, you've to play on the front foot, and not go on the back foot at all. You've to try and not overpower him, but milk him for singles," he opined.