SA v IND 2018: KL Rahul looking forward to good outing against South Africa in T20I series

KL Rahul failed to impress in the Test series against South Africa,

KL Rahul hopes of doing well in the T20Is

Indian cricketer KL Rahul didn't leave any impact in Test series against South Africa recently. The opener struggled in tackling the pacers on bouncy pitches. He was included in the 2nd and 3rd Test as a replacement for Shikhar Dhawan, but Rahul could only add 30 runs in four innings.

Rahul was not included in the ODI squad for South Africa series. He is currently in India for Vijay Hazare Trophy. The Karnataka batsmen spoke to Times of India and said he always looks for the positive side.

“I’ve always looked at the positive side. When you are playing sport you know you will have more bad days than good days. You need to take things in your stride and try to learn something new and improve every day.”

His recent form has not helped him much to gain confidence. Rahul said he needs to spend more time in the middle. 

“You learn as you play. Ups and downs are part of your career. This is not exactly a down. I am playing well but not able to convert. I am not able to spend more time in the middle. I will find the answer soon. Maybe it takes just one good innings to get the conversion rate better. It doesn’t have to be a 150 but even a 50 can help me. I’ve been working hard on my fitness and game,” he said.

The 25-year-old also talked about the challenging South African pitches. He said the deadly combination of seam movement with pace and bounce was a new experience. 

“South Africa was a whole new challenge. We expected pace and bounce. I didn’t think there would be so much seam movement. The seam movement with pace and bounce was new. It’s a deadly combination and you don’t want to be an opener when all these things are happening. But it was a good learning experience for me. I know what I need to tweak in my game and where I stand when it comes to my skill.”

Rahul had a disappointing run at Vijay Hazare so far, scoring just 3 and 22 runs in the last two matches. “I would have liked to spend more time in the middle. I did get a decent hit in the second match. I will play another match on Sunday and then train for a couple of days before I leave,” he said.

India will play 3-match T20I series against Proteas in a week. Rahul is eyeing a return to South Africa for the series. “I was there for a month and I didn’t do too much in the Test series, so I’m looking forward to going there and getting some runs.”

 
 

By Sihyeu Singh - 11 Feb, 2018

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