KL Rahul confident of doing well in Australia

Lokesh Rahul

The Indian selectors picked a 19-man squad for the Test series against Australia, starting on December 4 in Brisbane. Despite having experienced options like Gautam Gambhir at their disposal, the five wise men of Indian cricket preferred to select Karnataka batsman KL Rahul for the role of the third opener down under.

Speaking to ESPN Cricinfo, the 22-year-old has said that he is feeling confident about his batting and getting selected in the national team was "one of the biggest moments” of his career thus far.

"I am very confident and I have been batting well. Hopefully, I can continue with the same form and confidence when I get a chance in international cricket as well. I am watching the ball really well, I am moving well in the crease which is a big positive for me. I am very confident while batting, so I am hoping to continue in the same vein," Rahul said.

The right-hander had a stupendous Ranji Trophy season last year, where he amassed 1158 runs in 15 first-class matches and further provided proof of his talent by scoring centuries in each innings in the recent Duleep Trophy final against Central Zone.

Changing mindset towards batting has helped

The soft-spoken cricketer also said that altering the way he mentally approaches his batting has helped him significantly and it has led to him scoring the big tons in domestic competitions.

"At certain points after playing the new ball and doing all the hard work, somewhere I played a rash shot.

“Perhaps it was a lack of concentration, so I have worked on that aspect. Also, I have realised that to succeed in international cricket, I will have to be a better back-foot player. The wickets are going to be harder and bouncier, and the bowlers are going to be so much quicker. I practiced a lot on my back-foot play and getting used to the pace of international bowlers and making that switch from 130s to 140s (kph)," he added.

One thing that could go in Rahul’s favor is that he has earlier been to Australia with the India A team and even scored a fifty in the two unofficial Tests. But he feels that the pitches then were quite different but that exposure helped him immensely going forward.

"The wickets were very different when we went there last time, but I did learn a lot about my batting. I was getting starts and I couldn't convert them into bigger runs. Once I came back from Australia, I really worked a lot on my fitness and batting. I was getting carried away in the 30s and 40s, so I have worked with my coach on that aspect. I am focusing for long hours and I am pretty happy with the way, I've started off the season," he said.

When asked about how he felt to be selected for the first time in the Indian squad for a series not in India, but overseas, Rahul said that he wasn't worried about that and instead was looking forward to the big tour.

"Maybe I could have played 2-3 series in India but I wouldn't have felt like it is international cricket. This is one tour where I will get so much international exposure, everything is going to be entirely different. It is going to be a great experience for me and I am really looking forward to it," the Karnataka batsman said.

Rahul Dravid has been very helpful

He also credited the role played by Indian great Rahul Dravid and said that the former No.3 has been very helpful to him.

"We share the same name, so the comfort level is much better. It becomes easier for me to go and approach him [Dravid].Since my junior cricket days, I've been going to him and asking a lot of questions about batting, technically and mentally. He's been of great help, he's always helped me with my batting and I have been very lucky to have someone like him backing me," he said.

Rahul added that he is not looking to put any unnecessary pressure upon himself and wants to contribute to the team’s cause in any which way that he can.

"I've never been a person who sets targets. That just puts undue pressure on myself. I just think of going there and enjoying my game and treat every game as important. That's what I have been doing for the last 5-6 years that I've played first class cricket so I am hoping to stick to that and try and contribute to the team each time I go out on the field," he said.