CHENNAI: Last January, when Rishabh Pant picked up an injury in the first ODI against Australia, India were not even considering KL Rahul as an option. They were looking to fly in Sanju Samson for the second game in Rajkot. A delayed fitness report and logistical challenges forced the team to ask Rahul to don the wicketkeeping gloves.
It was supposed to serve two purposes. With Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma indispensable at the top, Rahul was slotted in at No 3 in the first ODI, followed by Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant. The innings never gathered any momentum as India suffered a 10-wicket thrashing. India then figured that their 3, 4 and 5 batted one position too low and wanted someone to make a big sacrifice so the rest didn't suffer.
And that happened to be Rahul. Apart from strengthening the brittle middle-order, Rahul was also a reliable wicketkeeper, which allowed India to add an extra batsman or bowler in Hardik Pandya's absence. Since then he has scored 80, 19, 88 n.o, 4, 112 in ODIs against Australia and New Zealand. After continuing as a wicketkeeper with Kings XI Punjab in IPL, Rahul enters the limited-over leg of the Australia tour as first-choice wicketkeeper.
The team felt Rahul was the best bet, with the T20 World Cup nearing. Then the pandemic stuck. Now the T20 World Cup is almost a year away and there is another one in 2022 before the 50-over World Cup in 2023. While there is time to groom the likes of Pant and Samson, that India are continuing to invest in Rahul as a wicketkeeper suggests he is the one earmarked for the tournament to be hosted by India in 2021.
It is not clear whether Rahul will compete with a wicketkeeper in the future or will get the opener's slot, considering that India may not wish to carry on with Shikhar Dhawan going forward. If he opens, it would be an enormous challenge, no matter how many examples you throw in. But Rahul isn't looking that far ahead.
"Nothing has been told to me and we as a team are not thinking that far. The World Cup is still far away and that is the long vision for every team. If it comes to me, we are taking one game at a time. And if I put consistent performances with bat and gloves, it allows the team to play an extra bowler or batsman. It helps the combination a little more and it is something I would love to do. If I get an option, I would keep wickets in all three World Cups," Rahul said on Wednesday.
There has been another noticeable change in Rahul's batting. Despite being pushed to No 5, he showed he can provide the sort of fireworks that Pant was expected to. Though he isn't all power, he has timing and ability to widen his range. In T20s, when he got the chance to open, he played with freedom.
"I wouldn't call my batting power-hitting. It is not something I'm blessed with and I have a certain skill set. I try to play a role that the team requires. If it is about scoring at 160, I will play that way or if it is another way, I would do that too. I have learned to play the moment. As you grow old, you need to keep getting better with skills and I'm constantly learning," Rahul said.
Over the next couple of weeks, Rahul has to be flexible with his role. It is an experiment which has given India a luxury. But at some point if it fails, the team shouldn't forget what Rahul the batsman can offer.