Indian opener KL Rahul is all set for the upcoming three-match Test series against South Africa. This series will be crucial for Rahul as ahead of the red-ball battle, the Karnataka batter was appointed as Team India’s vice-captain after Rohit Sharma‘s ouster due to a hamstring injury.
The move by the Indian cricket board to give Rahul the vice-captaincy responsibility also shows that he is being looked at as the long-term leader in the future. The 29-year-old, who debuted in the longest format in 2014, has so far played 40 matches and scored 2321 runs at an average of 35.16 with 6 hundreds and 12 half-centuries.
The first Test of the forthcoming three-match leg is a Boxing-Day contest, starting December 26 in Centurion, and ahead of the series opener, Rahul had a candid chat with teammate Mayank Agarwal.
In the conversation, Rahul recalled the event when he was dropped from the Test team due to bad form and thought that everything was over for him when it came to playing Test cricket for India. Interestingly, Rahul’s departure paved the way for Mayank’s Test debut against Australia at the MCG. Rahul admitted that he has changed his batting approach and is really happy that he was given the vice-captain responsibility of the Indian Team.
“Before 6-7 months or a year ago, I never thought I would get to play Test cricket again. Things changed quickly, and I am very happy for such a huge responsibility is given to me as vice-captain for this tour. I am looking forward to giving my best,” Rahul said in a video shared by the BCCI.
“I have bitter-sweet memories from Boxing Day. I debuted on a Boxing Day Test in Australia, but that did not go well. I lost my position again. I felt that was the end for me. I think I have become more balanced in my approach to the game. I have changed a lot from how I used to play in 2014 when I made my debut and in 2018,” he added.
