The coming together of KL and Rahul: As opener and mentor, KL Rahul finds happy space on tour of Australia

Forget anything funny, but for a batsman who is playing in his 56th Test, been a captain, an opener, a floater, a keeper, Rahul’s story has been devoid of stature that goes with that kind of record. Almost always under pressure if runs didn’t come or relief when they came. Until this tour of Australia, where he has been India’s top run-scorer past midway in the series.

India’s KL Rahul bats during play on day four of the third cricket test between India and Australia at the Gabba in Brisbane, Australia. (AP)

One remembers a stray chat in 2018 on a tour of England with their then-batting coach Mark Ramprakash, who went, “Solid batter. Does he realise how good he is?” It was a wonderful way to frame Rahul’s career: forget others, does he know himself?

The cricketers talk about being in a ‘happy space’ and it has come through in the way he has been moving around in the camp, in the nets and warm-ups, and rain-breaks at the dugouts – putting his hands around the shoulders of youngsters and talking with them earnestly or having a laugh. In the middle, he has been guiding the likes of Yashasvi Jaiswal to ‘calm down’ and tell him to do ‘breathing exercises’ to achieve that state of mind. Considering the tour started with uncertainty about his position before he was suddenly thrusted as an opener due to Rohit Sharma’s paternity leave, the happy space is quite something. Of course, the runs help. Such was his composure in gathering those runs in Perth that Rohit and Co decided it’s better to leave him as an opener for the rest of the series.

Not just his persona, even his batting has two shades – the aggressive KL and the compact assured Rahul. According to Mathias, it all started after the first stint with RCB in the IPL in 2013. “He came back absolutely transformed. He had moved with the world class players there, saw how they prepared, what they could do, and came back obsessed about becoming the best. There was a remarkable transformation in the way he used to bat – was always good, solid, but post that the range of shots and the attacking mindset was staggering. Chalk and cheese,” said Mathias.

India’s KL Rahul bats during play in the first cricket test between India and Australia in Perth, Australia. (AP)

But to be successful as an opener, he had to return to compactness and abstinence. The hands are held close to the body, the downward path of the bat is straight, the head doesn’t fall, and the feet has been listening to his instinct. On this tour so far, his forward stride has been precise and longer than most other Indians. Like Rohit of the past, he too plays the line, tucking the bat inside the line, but unlike Rohit of this series, he makes the last-minute adjustments needed to handle the late deviations of the ball. Almost ala Dravid; the forward stride isn’t as much of course, but tending towards it.

Dravid was at another level when it came to that stride, be it in England or Australia. Unlike many, he had the habit of dragging himself forward, a purist’s dare. Even the more aggressive batsmen would not do that – they would tend and blast on the up and such, but Dravid would take himself close to the fire to douse it. KL Rahul has been trying to do that on this tour.

And his mentorship, publicly acknowledged by Jaiswal, has been another stirring factor. For a man who hasn’t had the stature that goes with his kind of experience, or fan love, he could have been pardoned if he had just been in his shell, focussed on his own game. Especially as an opener.

India’s KL Rahul celebrates his fifty runs on the second day of the first cricket test between Australia and India in Perth, Australia, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Trevor Collens)

But he has been willingly reaching out to the youngsters. “I am just passing on what M Vijay did to me when I was a young opener and was feeling nervous,” he said. From his personal experience, he can sense those nervy traits or self-doubts or impetuousness in others and rather than be a mute witness, he has been intervening as a senior.

In the words of his friend Mathias, “He cares about collective success, never likes to hog the limelight. Even as a kid, and it hasn’t changed even now. He will make a very good captain when his time comes. KL has a wonderful trait that when he does really well, he doesn’t talk about how good he is. And when he doesn’t do well, he will sit back, analyse and look at what good he did in the past. That’s a wonderful recipe. He stays grounded when he is doing well. When he isn’t doing well, he doesn’t sulk underground, he will actively look to bounce back.”

If he can continue doing it for two more Tests and achieve success for himself and guide others, respect and perhaps even some fan love should come his way. Then the tour of Australia can go down as the one where KL and Rahul personas merged as a wholesome unitary personality, at ease with himself and with the world.