The Test match at Leeds is evenly poised with two days left to play. After the first innings of both sides almost cancelled out each other, the Test match has become a one-innings shootout. All eyes will be on the Indian batting as they always falter in the third innings of the Test match. They have started decently being at 90/2 in 23.5 overs with a lead of 96 runs. India will rely on the senior players to step up and be counted. Their most experienced senior player in the team happens to be KL Rahul and he is still there at the crease alongside captain Shubman Gill and they will resume proceedings for India.
KL Rahul has looked assured in the second innings so far as he is unbeaten on 47* off 75 balls. He has hit seven boundaries so far. The question is can he carry on and convert this into a big and gigantic knock. Because India will need Rahul to go big in this innings in order to set a challenging score for England. Rahul played well and got a start in the first innings but could not convert it into triple figures. He will and all of India will desperately hope for him to convert this to a hundred and beyond to keep England at bay.
KL Rahul: Inconsistency and Injuries plaguing his career.
Whenever we talk about KL Rahul, we think of him as a team man. Whatever the team requires to do, he is always there to put his hand up. But that has sometimes gone against him as his versatileness has turned out to be his downfall. He has kept wickets for India, batted in the middle order and opened the batting as well as and when it was required. He has also been in and out of the side due to either a lack of form or injuries.
He began his Test career back in 2014 in Australia and began with a century at the Sydney Cricket Ground. He has had many memorable knocks overseas against South Africa and Australia but has never been consistent enough. He has had a trend of starting a big series well and tapering off towards the end, something he has to change in order to be successful in this ongoing series. He averages 33.6 in Test matches after playing 58 games. We all know that KL is a better player than what his Test average says. He needs to improve and go upwards in his career.
KL has a good record in South Africa and also in England as he has scored hundreds there apart from scoring a century in Australia as well. Even in the other formats, he has been in and out of the side and kept wickets in the recently concluded Champions Trophy. With the Test team in a transition phase, KL Rahul will be looking to get big scores and set the series on fire.
KL Rahul’s main aim is to emulate veterans Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
KL Rahul has looked compact and secure in the current innings so far. He looked good in the first innings and got a century in the tour matches before the series. He will look to convert this knock into something gigantic and try and set up the game for Team India. Something that veterans who have retired just a few months ago used to do for fun. Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have played some memorable innings when the team needed it and KL would like to take a leaf out of that book.
The mainstays of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane are no longer a part of the scheme of things. While Kohli and Sharma have retired, Pujara and Rahane are not in the scheme of things and the selectors have made the call that they are past their prime. So, in the absence of these players KL Rahul needs to step up as the most experienced player and be counted. If he can start by scoring a big knock today, it will go a long way in establishing himself in the side.
Kohli has played some memorable knocks against Australia, South Africa when the chips were down and India needed it. One can remember his twin hundreds in Adelaide as being the benchmark of success. He has had a lot of knocks which has helped and benefitted India. Even Rohit has played some clutch knocks under pressure for India. Who can forget the knock in Chennai against the turning ball scoring 150 odd. With the veterans out of the side, Rahul should see this as an opportunity to do well and play a crucial knock that could turn out to be match defining in the context of the match.
What Lies Ahead.
All eyes will be on KL Rahul and captain Shubman Gill to give India a good start in what will be challenging conditions out there. It is overcast, a little damp and it will be a bowling day to start the proceedings. With the lead at 96, India will aim to bat well and for at least two sessions to set a challenging total for England to chase. The hosts, on the other hand, will look to exploit the helpful morning conditions and create further inroads to put more pressure on India.
An intriguing day awaits us all, a crucial one for the match and maybe for the series as well. Who will nail the opportunity down? Only time will tell.
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