Follow UsWhen India lost the 2023 World Cup final, it felt like the entire team had nothing else left to give. You can't fault them for that, too. Winning 10 matches in a row, India could have had the perfect World Cup, but it wasn't to be, as Australia showed their class.
When Glenn Maxwell hit those winning runs in Ahmedabad, a distraught Indian team left the stadium, but what followed was a new era under new head coach Gautam Gambhir.
One of the major changes Gambhir went on to make was demoting KL Rahul to six, one spot below than what he played at the ODI World Cup, where he had amassed 452 runs at 75.33.
All this was to accommodate one more all-rounder in Axar Patel. Was that the right move, given that Rahul had made No. 5 his own? Was it the right move to have Axar at five?
Also Read: India Always Had Superstars - Axar Patel Made Them World Champions
As it turned out, it was a resounding yes on both counts. The murmurs suggesting Rishabh Pant be brought in Rahul's place persisted for a short while but in the end, sticking with Rahul turned out to be the right move.
For Rahul, who has established himself as the first-chose wicketkeeper in ODIs, it was a new challenge but not the first one of his career. He played different positions, and donned various hats in his international career, across formats before. Hence, seeing Rahul taking on this new role came as no surprise.
But was it a role that he would succeed in?
Six is a crucial position in ODI cricket. It is handed to someone who can induce momentum in the innings, whether you are batting first or chasing, and Rahul did just that.
He was dismissed just once in the four innings in the Champions Trophy, scoring 140 runs at a strike rate of nearly 98. That tells you two things: he stays out there and finishes things off for his team till the end while not allowing his scoring rate to dip - something MS Dhoni did so well during his peak.
Just look at the last two games. In the semi-final against Australia (Yes, Australia again!!!) Rahul came in during the last 15 overs of the chase at a time when his side needed near run-a-ball. Moreover, Dubai is not a track where you can get going from ball one. Rahul started off slowly, but after a lull, he smashed a couple of boundaries to relieve the pressure.
After Kohli got out, another period of low scores began. Rahul held one end up, and when Hardik Pandya saw the right match-up (Adam Zampa), he went after him to tilt the match completely in India's favour. Like Dhoni, he "finished things off in style" over long-on.
In the final where the pressure is a notch higher, Rahul's calm approach especially when the New Zealand spinners brought them back into the contest, was soothing. With ones and twos needed, Rahul barely took risks, and took India over the line.
"I don’t think I can say this on camera but I was s******* myself at the end, but we still had a couple of batters to come, I was confident we could get over the line. In moments like this and big games, it's more about holding your composure, which we all know about it, but it's not easy, but happy to win this and get over the line this time," Rahul said after the match.
Also Read: Rohit Sharma's Legacy Lies In How India Embraced Fearlessness Under Pressure
Evident from his strokeplay is that he always looked to play straight. He played in the V in front of the wickets, that fetched him 43% of his runs.
Even his play against spin was excellent. Out of the 10 times he charged down the ground, he did so on eight occasions against spinners, hitting two sixes and a four, striking at 237.5.
Even against the pacers, he was happy to wait for the ball to come to him and play it according to merit, and not by premeditating. He had a control percentage of 89.3 against pace and 93.1 against spin, making it a near-perfect tournament.
Just like his control in batting, his wicketkeeping skills too were outstanding, matching the brilliance of his ODI World Cup 2023 showing. Since the start of the World Cup, no wicketkeeper has inflicted more dismissals than Rahul (35). He also has a catch efficiency of around 80%.
In this period, Rahul has played everywhere between four and seven in ODIs, led the side and also kept wickets in 23 out of the 24 games.
"Very very solid mind, never gets overawed by the pressure around him, that's one of the reason we wanted to have him in the middle phase, to try and finish off the game for us. With his experience and class, there's a bit of calmness when he bats, and he picks the right shot to play in the pressure situation, which allows the other guys who are batting around him to come out and play freely. For example, Hardik," skipper Rohit Sharma said, lavishing praise on Rahul.
By the looks of it, Rahul, the "wicketkeeper-finisher", is here to stay, and just like his other roles, he looks determined to ensure he does not let anyone else sneak in.