Rotating the strike as soon as you enter has proven difficult, according to KL Rahul

KL Rahul has frequently been shuttled up and down the Indian batting order, fairly or otherwise. He has taken guard from number 1 to much lower in the order which requires tremendous shifting of positions and adaption, and that is certainly not easy. But he has accepted the fact that as difficult as it is, it is inevitable. His motto has been Do-your-job. For more details; Click Here

In 82 ODIs, KL Rahul has batted in several positions: 16 times at No. 1, 7 times at No. 2, 3 times at No. 3, 13 times at No. 4, 31 times at No. 5, 6 times at No. 6 and has, quite bizarrely for a primarily a career opener, even batted as low as No. 7 on one occasion.

“I suppose there are no easy solutions to that problem, but let me say this. It is never easy for anyone on the team to be moving in a different places, but it’s, eh, that’s how the game is,” he said prior to the team’s third and final league encounter against New Zealand in the Champions Trophy. “Whatever the team thinks is the best possible combination and what they feel is the best entry points for the player, you leave it up to the team to decide and you just try and do your job.

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Aside from the shifting of batting orders, the Dubai International Cricket Stadium (DICS) pitch has been relatively difficult to bat on making it an extra challenge to adjust, especially when trying to reduce the amount of dot balls.

“It hasn’t been easy to rotate the strike instantly when facing fast bowler or spinner,” he noted before the beginning of a practice session on Friday. His statement came ahead of the team’s practice on Friday. “Once dot balls begin to accumulate, the pressure builds on a batsman so much that they are forced to play an extravagant shot or further oversimplify their shot, and of course that provides an opportunity to the bowlers and the opposition. That has been the challenge. We are trying to figure out how to strike the bowlers more often.”

While scoring runs is something everyone’s keen on, the wicket at hand makes it extremely difficult to do so. The risk of seamers taking wickets and the dot ball percentage should ideally be suited for this very domain. The key is to spend more time on the wicket which will help dictate the approach that one is planning to take, especially when bowling a certain bowler.

For example, Rahul has been asking those who have spent some time like Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer in the last match, and Shubman Gill in the first match, for tips regarding the type of surface and which shots will best suit it.

“There are discussions happening in the squad and noticing the number of people who have batted a lot, Shubham’s batted a lot on that wicket, nearly everyone has batted in the last match and so, Shreyas was also there. So talking to them about this, I am positive that they have coped with that issue as well, at least some like me, Hardik (Pandya) or Jaddu (Ravindra Jadeja). It is tough for us when Axar (Patel) walks in.

“So just talking to them and trying to understand what they did to solve the issue or what areas they were attempting to go after, the area of the square of the wicket or much straighter. These are the types of areas which I imagine one would speak about, and then it becomes very personal. You try to find what works for you.”

Rahul has without doubt, taken the place of wicketkeeper since ODIs, but the job is not easy. The most significant of these is the competition he faces with Rishabh Pant, whose presence as a specialist wicket keeper is constantly hovering above him. This situation increases stress for Rahul and it leaves him very little room for mistakes. “There is – I won’t lie,” he admitted.

“I think we don’t need to debate on his talent because he has proven beyond doubt how explosive he can be in a game and within how much time he can make a game changing impact. So, as mentioned before, there is always the challenge for the team to either utilize me or him. That is always there.”

“I don’t want to compete with Rishabh and I don’t want to play like him so if I get the chance, I try to see how best I can perform. Similarly, when he gets his chances, I know he doesn’t try to emulate anyone else’s style either. He gets selected based on how he will perform and what he brings to the table just as I do. So I try and do what I do best and stick to my game.”

While Rahul happens to be one of the most criticized cricketers on social media, he seems to have a balanced view about how to handle relentless criticism. “I am quite used to seeing it and hearing it and reading about it. Sometimes I do take a step back and see if there is any substance in the criticism,” he said.

“Indeed, I will fail at some point, I will make mistakes, I will misread the game and that’s the beauty about sports and for me, if my heart is in the right place and if I believe that this is the most suitable for me to win the game, then I can go home and sleep like a baby. But I mean, yes, I do read about it. And if it is valid, then I will attempt to incorporate it.”