The euphoria after the Perth win is yet to die down. The media, both mainstream and social, is agog with stories of how the stronghold of Perth was breached and the players who shone. One of them was KL Rahul, though his contribution seems to have been relegated to the background. He is the unsung hero, the bulwark, on whose back the story of this win started. There are stories galore, and rightfully so, about the stellar contributions of Bumrah and Jaiswal, about the return of King Kohli, but not many about Rahul.
It was a return to the country where he made his test debut, in Melbourne, on the 2014 tour of Australia. That series is remembered for Kohli’s four centuries, but Rahul scored one too. In only his second test, at Sydney, he was asked to open the innings, something he would be called upon to do a few times in his career. He responded by scoring 110. He has eight centuries in tests, and seven of them have come overseas.
That should lay to rest any debate about his talent, but the problem has been consistency. He hasn’t really been able to hold on to his place in the team, or batting slot, and that is a riddle. He was dropped after the Bengaluru test in the recent home series against New Zealand. In Perth too, he only got the opportunity because of the absence of Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill.
Opening in Australia, or anywhere, for that matter, is no easy task, but Rahul, not for the first time, acquitted himself with aplomb. In the first innings, with wickets falling around him, he looked the most assured. Though he scored only 26, it was an important contribution in the bigger picture. Along with Pant and Nitish Reddy’s knocks, it gave the team a semblance of a total and something to bowl with.
After Bumrah had dismantled Australia’s first innings in the company of Harshit Rana, Rahul was back on the job. In the company of Yashasvi Jaiswal, he helped lay a massive foundation of 201 runs. More than the runs (77), again it was his composure and the shepherding of his younger partner that was noteworthy. Time and again, he advised Jaiswal to curb his impetuosity, and respect the conditions. The result was test match batting at its finest.
Though Rahul was unlucky to miss out on another overseas century, Jaiswal went on to add to his growing legend with his fourth. He later acknowledged how crucial Rahul’s presence and guidance was to his own innings.
There is already talk of letting Rahul and Jaiswal continue their partnership at the top of the order. It’s not an easy decision for the team management; it is what is called a ‘champagne problem’, when you have an abundance of options. It is the captain Rohit Sharma who will have to relinquish his place at the top if Rahul is to continue opening, and one is not sure that will happen. Rohit himself is no stranger to this game of snakes and ladders, having played everywhere in the batting order till he found his place at the top.
It remains to be seen what happens in Adelaide. The fans must be hoping this test performance gives Rahul the stability he so desires in tests, a format where he has been stand-in captain in South Africa on the 2018 tour. His test average of 34.26 after 53 matches is not an accurate reflection of his class, and desperately needs a fillip. For a batsman who holds the world record for taking the least number of innings, 20, to score an international hundred in each format, it must be frustrating being shunted up and down the order.
Let’s hope he finds his deserving spot, and a longer, more stable run in the team. And let’s also hope, that the languid grace of Rahul continues to occupy the batting crease for some time to come.
About author: Amarinder Sangha is a former Punjab (India) cricketer now based at Newcastle upon Tyne, UK. He writes frequently on national, international issues related to the sport.
Wah !