Reacting on the Wicket Keeper battle between him and Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul said that the competition will always be high until he is a part of the Indian team. He added that the side has a pool of talented players which drives an individual to push himself and get better.
KL Rahul vs Rishabh Pant on Wicket Keeper Battle
Addressing a press-conference Rahul said, “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.
Rahul, who opens in the shortest format, was dropped from India’s squad for the 5th T20I against England after failing to impress in the first four matches.
Yet, the team management put faith in him at the No. 5 spot for the 1st ODI and he delivered the goods by scoring 62 runs off 43 deliveries.
At the press conference, Rahul also admitted that the No. 5 spot in the ODI team allowed him the time and space to rediscover form having struggled to do so as an opener in the T20I side.
He went on to say that in the ODIs there is a lot more time which helped him. “Like 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 personal 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.
