KL Rahul spoke about his encounters with Jasprit Bumrah in the nets and admitted that he avoids hitting flamboyant shots against the speedster to avoid provoking him. Bumrah is widely regarded as the best all-round bowler of his generation, and his unusual action, fast movement both ways, and relentless accuracy make him a nightmare for opposing hitters.

While Rahul stated that it is the same for him in the nets, where he bowls with the same intensity. During a conversation with Jatin Sapru for Humans of Bombay, the host highlighted Rahul’s strong numbers against Bumrah in the IPL.

However, Rahul quickly downplayed it, partly out of humor, saying that Bumrah might hit him on the head or toes in the nets if he said something to provoke him.

"I will not agree because he’ll break my head in the next net. He’ll break my head or break my toe in the next session. So, I’m not saying anything. No comments," Rahul told Jatin Sapru on the Humans of Bombay YouTube channel.

When asked whether Bumrah gets angry if someone hits him in the nets, Rahul replied, "Very, very angry. But first of all, it’s not easy to hit him in the net; very few people can do it."

Rahul talked about how difficult Bumrah is for batters, saying that even well-known players find it difficult to deal with him. He emphasized how difficult it is to defend or score against the top bowler because of his action, release point, and talent.

"He’s the hardest bowler to hit, to hit for sure. Now I think at least we play him day in and day out, so you’re used to his action and release point a little bit, but if you’re just facing him as an opposition from a different country it’s just very difficult to pick him firstly -defend against him, then to even think of scoring against him becomes that much more harder," Rahul added.

He also shared his way of buttering Bumrah and calming him down when he senses the pacer is getting intense in the nets. Rahul often has to lighten the mood by joking about Bumrah’s brilliance, easing the tension in the nets.

"Vo toh daant peesta hi rehta hai (He keeps grinding their teeth all the time), every time where you can see his face and his nerves and everything, just like, you know, he’s ready for a fight… Sometimes you have to tell him, Bumrah, same team, bro, it’s okay. Wickets from nets won't get counted, so then he laughs. I play that card with him, saying, "Boss, you’re unplayable, you’re just too good, don’t worry, bowl slowly," Rahul concluded.

Bumrah starred for India with a fifer in the first innings of the first Test against South Africa in Kolkata, where the batters failed the hosts as they folded for 93 while chasing a 124-run target.