London: Somewhere in between the brilliance of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, the knock of KL Rahul went unnoticed. The flamboyant batsman stood up to the task by showing his brilliance to the cricketing world with his strokes down the ground.
The new opener has dealt the pressure well to give a solid opening partnership for Team India.
Ahead of the game against Pakistan, the Indian team was worried about KL Rahul, who is opening in the ODI after a long time.
Adding to that, it is for the first time that Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul are playing together at the opening slot. However, the Karnataka batsman performed brilliantly to help the team get a dazzling start.
Rating his knock against Pakistan, the Karnataka batsman quoted that he would give himself 6 out of 10. KL Rahul wants to take the confidence forward by improving his game on a consistent basis.
“As a kid or as a young cricketer growing up this is what you dream to do I’m really happy that I got the opportunity and I give myself six out of ten!
Hopefully, I carry on the confidence and get better,” Rahul stated.
Rahul, on his part, knows what a big opportunity it is and he is ready to fill in the big boots of Dhawan till the time he comes back (if at all in this tournament).
“Obviously Shikhar and Rohit for the last three or four years have been such a dangerous combination having done so well. They have owned those positions. I had to wait for my chance and I am just happy that I got to bat in the top of the order,” Rahul told reporters in the mixed zone.
“We gave their bowlers and the ball the respect it deserved and carried on from there,” Rahul said.
Like the Windies of ‘70s
Former India captain Krishnamachari Srikkanth has been impressed by India’s form and claims their powerful displays are torturing opponents in the same way the great West Indies’ team of the 1970s used to have teams beaten mentally before the match even started.
“It is a little like England, at the moment everything seems to be going right (for India) and the fans should be very happy,” Srikkanth said.
“This is starting to feel a little like the West Indian teams of the 1970s, where the opposition would start the game with a psychological disadvantage.
“Teams are worried about facing India and how they will cope with them, which immediately puts them on the back foot.”
The West Indies, led by Clive Lloyd, was a dominant force when they won the first two editions of the World Cup in 1975 and 1979.
