India Tour of Australia : “He won’t score that many runs against us” – KL Rahul reveals the visitors have a plan to tame Marnus Labuschagne

India Tour of Australia : “He won’t score that many runs against us” – KL Rahul reveals the visitors have a plan to tame Marnus Labuschagne

KL Rahul and Marnus Labuschagne

KL Rahul and Marnus Labuschagne
KL Rahul and Marnus Labuschagne

Ever since his debut in 2018, Australia batsman Marnus Labuschagne has taken the world by storm with his consistent run in Test cricket. Labuschagne has scored a whopping 1459 runs in 14 matches at an impressive average of 63.43. His emergence as a batting stalwart now has India in a fix who will be locking horns with Australia in four-match Test series. The return of Steve Smith and David Warner means the Aussies are stronger than ever as the visitors look to retain the Border Gavaskar trophy.

Team India clinched their first ever Test series Down Under on their last visit to the land of Oz but the story was very different back then. Smith and Warner were serving their year long ban during the series. And Labuschagne was an unknown star on the horizon of the Aussie side. Now the trio is in full flow and ready to reap through any opponent any they face.

I don’t think he is unknown anymore

Marnus Labuschagne
Marnus Labuschagne

Speaking about Labuschagne, India batter KL Rahul lauded the consistency of the Queenslander. Rahul shares that Labuschagne have been knocking hard since the past year. And India has a plan to contain the run machine in all whites. He goes on to add that it will be a great sight to see India’s top-notch bowling lineup clash with Labuschagne.

“I don’t think he is unknown anymore. He is in the top 5 and he has been getting a lot of runs in the last 12-15 months or before the COVID in the games that he played. He has been really consistent for his side,” Hindustan Times quoted Rahul as saying.

“We have watched how Marnus played and fingers crossed hopefully, he won’t score that many runs against us. We will have a plan set, we have a top quality bowling attack so it will be a good challenge for him and our bowlers as well.”

I try to play the role the team requires

kl rahul
KL Rahul

Speaking of his own ravishing form in the same period, the Karnataka opener admitted that he is no power hitter. Having played all around the batting line up, Rahul is confident that he can up his ante if the team requires him to. Rahul is known for his array of classic shots and tries to stick to his strengths when the going gets tough in the middle.

“I wouldn’t call my batting power-hitting, that’s something I honestly feel like I have not been able to do or not what I am blessed with,” Rahul said.

“I am blessed with certain skills and I try and play the role I feel the team requires me to play at that particular moment. If that means scoring runs at 160-170 strike rate, I try to do that to the best of my ability and if it’s the other way around, I will try to do that,” he added.

Also read : ‘Expect a tight and good contest between India and Australia,’ says Waqar Younis