New Delhi: Senior India batter KL Rahul expressed his readiness to adapt to any batting position, emphasizing that he has overcome the “mental challenge” of being a floater in the lineup. Rahul delivered an impressive performance in the first Test against Australia in Perth, scoring 26 and 77 while opening in the absence of regular skipper Rohit Sharma, who was on paternity leave. With Rohit set to return for the day-night Test starting Friday, Rahul addressed the inevitable question about his batting spot, reaffirming his commitment to contributing wherever the team needs him.
“Anything (opening or middle order),” the 32-year-old batter told reporters ahead of India’s training session here.
“I just want to be in the playing XI, which means wherever. You go there and bat and play for the team,” said the batter with 3000 plus runs in 54 Tests.
KL Rahul began his Test career in Australia a decade ago as a middle-order batter before transitioning to an opener. Over the years, his batting position in both the Test and ODI setups has remained inconsistent, which took a toll on him mentally.
“I have batted in many positions. Earlier it was a bit of a challenge, not technically but mentally about how to play those first 20-25 balls,” he opened about his apprehensions.
“How early can I attack? How much do I need to be cautious? Those were things that were tricky early on.
“But now that I have played in Tests and ODIs all over the place, it has given me an idea of how I want to manage my innings,” said the stylish stroke-maker, who has two hundreds in South Africa, one in Australia and a couple of more in England among his eight Test tons.
“Whether I am batting top of the order or in the middle order. If I can manage the first 30-40 balls at start, everything then seems like regular batting, that’s what I try to focus on,” he explained.
