Cricket World Cup: KL Rahul took the challenge head on

On the eve of the Pakistan match, the Indian team finished their fielding drills and headed to the nets, located just outside the Old Trafford ground. But KL Rahul stayed back. He stood alone just looking at the pitch, which was under covers with all the rain around. He seemed all to himself and somewhat lost in thought. You could sense purpose in his body language. This was his chance at redemption and set things right.

In the absence of Shikhar Dhawan, Rahul had to step up against Pakistan on a cloudy morning and in conditions that favoured Mohammad Amir and Wahab Riaz. The start was the key to India’s fortunes and Rahul was needed to give Rohit Sharma every support possible to lay a strong foundation. He did just that and set the match up for India. In fact, the way he left the ball in the first over itself was a statement.

Former Australian captain Michael Clarke, put it well, “You could sense that he was out there to protect his wicket and it wouldn’t be easy to dislodge him. So what if the conditions were against him? He was battle ready.”

Without doubt he was. Mentally and physically. Even in the match against South Africa, KL Rahul was excellent in supporting role. He had given Rohit company and helped steer the chase. But Pakistan is always different and here he was replacing someone who had scored a match-winning hundred against the Australians. With millions of people watching, the pressure must have been immense. For it’s not simply a World Cup match. It is an event in itself and always comes with a baggage of a very different kind. This is one contest that makes a superhero out of someone and for Rahul it was no different. Assured, composed and resolute, his partnership with Rohit couldn’t have been more perfect in setting up the game for India. Yes there was the odd misunderstanding and a couple of false shots but that’s par for the course in overcast conditions.

It is perhaps time to just pause for a moment and go back January when Rahul was mired in self-doubt. In the immediate aftermath of the TV show controversy, he told this writer, “I had started to doubt myself as a human being. I had always thought I was a nice person and all of a sudden that belief had been shaken. I wasn’t ready to face the world and all I did was go to the gym and train. That’s where I felt safe.”

It was no different on the eve of the Pakistan game or on the big day itself. Rahul was in his zone and it was just him, his bat and the Pakistan bowlers. Everything else seemed irrelevant for the time he was out there scoring the valuable 57 runs.

“I was never concerned with the opening slot,” said Harbhajan Singh. “I always knew KL Rahul has the game to step up and play a big hand in Shikhar Dhawan’s absence. He will treat this as an opportunity and don’t be surprised if he plays a big part in India’s World Cup campaign.”

Can Rahul finally do justice to the potential that he always had? He did get a century during India’s tour of England last year and when everyone felt he had turned a new leaf, he let things drift. But that was Rahul before the controversy. This Rahul, hardened and matured, knows the importance of this campaign. He knows that things were about to go away from him. He is aware that there could be no stage bigger than the World Cup. This is where legacies are shaped. And this is Rahul’s chance to pen his own story.