India vs England: ‘You always try to push yourself’ – KL Rahul talks about the competition in the Indian cricket team

India vs England: ‘You always try to push yourself’ – KL Rahul talks about the competition in the Indian cricket team

KL Rahul

Indian wicketkeeper-batsman KL Rahul regained his lost form during the ongoing One Day International (ODI) series against England. The 28-year old played an amazing knock of 62* runs in just 43 deliveries to help his side post a match-winning total of 317/5.  

KL Rahul miserably failed during the recently-concluded T20I series against England where he could score just 15 runs in four innings. However, his knock in the first ODI will help to boost his morale ahead of the upcoming games. But the Karnataka-born still faces stiff competition with Rishabh Pant at number five in the 50-over format. 

He recently addressed this during a virtual press conference ahead of the second ODI scheduled on March 26. Rahul mentioned that the players always need to push themselves harder to gain a spot in the current national side.

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“When you are part of this Indian team, you always know competition would be really high. You can never sit back and feel comfortable like you own your position. That’s the good thing, our team has high talent, players will always come in. As a player in this team, you always try to push yourself and try to get better with each passing day,” Rahul said.

‘I could take more time in ODI’: Rahul

KL Rahul
KL Rahul

KL Rahul also mentioned that the change of formats helped him find his lost mojo back with the bat. He said the players like Shikhar Dhawan and Krunal Pandya were batting well at the other end that could allow him to take some extra time to settle in the middle. 

“As I said, the ODI format, playing at number five, I could take a little more time than I did maybe in T20s. Having spent a little time in the middle, having played a couple of good shots, the footwork got better.

“When I walked in, Shikhar was batting well. I knew when Krunal walked in, I realised we had to stitch a partnership together, when you stop thinking about your own game and when there is responsibility in front of you, you start thinking clearer, having spent 20-25 balls in the middle, I started to feel more confident,” said Rahul.

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