Talented Karnataka batsman will be travelling with team India for tour down under
A file photo of KL Rahul.
Chennai: “A little bit nervous, but excited,” said K.L. Rahul on the eve of embarking on a challenging Australia tour, a first trip with the Indian team for the talented Karnataka batsman. In an interview with the ESPNcricinfo, Rahul said being selected for India was “one of the biggest moments” of his career till now.
“I am very confident and I have been batting well. Hopefully, I can continue with the same form and confidence when I get a chance in international cricket as well. I am watching the ball really well, I am moving well in the crease which is a big positive for me,” added the 22-year-old who was named in the 19-member squad as a back-up to opener Shikhar Dhawan and Murali Vijay.
Rahul's call-up was no surprise given that he had a stupendous domestic season in 2013 scoring 1158 runs in 15 first-class matches at an average of 52.63, including three centuries. Rahul said he worked on his mental approach and it reaped rich rewards. “At certain points after playing the new ball and doing all the hard work, somewhere I played a rash shot,” he said.
“Perhaps it was a lack of concentration, so I have worked on that aspect. Also I have realised that to succeed in international cricket, I will have to be a better back-foot player. The wickets are going to be harder and bouncier, and the bowlers are going to be so much quicker. I practiced a lot on my back-foot play and getting used to the pace of international bowlers and making that switch from 130s to 140s (kph),” said Rahul who began the 2014 season with a century in each innings for South Zone against Central Zone in the Duleep trophy final.
As part of the India A team, Rahul had been to Australia before. In two ‘Tests’, Rahul scored 101 runs at an average of 33.66. “The wickets were very different when we went there last time. But I did learn a lot about my batting, he said.
( Source : dc correspondent )
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