"Energy has been great" - KL Rahul answers question on missing Virat Kohli's intensity as captain
Team India captain KL Rahul rubbished questions about missing former skipper Virat Kohli's intensity after second defeat against South Africa on the trot at Boland Park.
This is India's first series since Kohli's resignation of capitancy from the 50-overs format. But the new era has not started on a positive note, with India losing the series with one match still to go.
India in the ODI series against SA in South Africa
1992-93 - Lost ❌
2006-07 - Lost ❌
2011 - Lost ❌
2013 - Lost ❌
2018 - Won ✅
2022 - Lost ❌
Virat Kohli is the only India captain to win an ODI series against SA in South Africa 🙂
#SAvIND #Cricket #KLRahul #ViratKohli https://t.co/jJQU3LSrL4
When asked whether the Men in Blues missed Kohli's vigor, KL Rahul said
"The energy has been great, it's been tough on the body staying in the bubbles. We love challenges and we have come short in the first 2 games, we will look ahead to the third game and try and win that one."
India failed to pose any challenges to the Proteas side, who are also going through a transition, as the hosts notched up two convincing victories.
After a 31-run win in the 1st ODI, Temba Bavuma & Co registered a seven-wicket victory in the second encounter. Chasing 288 runs, South Africa went home with 11 balls to spare and seven wickets in hand.
However, KL Rahul stressed that there are a couple of areas they need to work on before entering the big tournaments. Middle-order batting and bowling in the middle overs is something India will have to ponder with the ODI World Cup approaching thick and fast.
The stand-in captain said:
"I think they are playing some really good cricket at home, we are making mistakes as well in the middle. It's a good learning for us. We are a team that takes a lot of pride in winning, but good learning for us and hopefully we can grow. We are trying to get better at things we haven't done well in the past. Partnerships, middle order becomes crucial when we are entering a big tournament, wanna get better at bowling in the middle overs and these are the few things which are really obvious and right in front of us. We have spoken about it and it's only up to us to get better, learn from it and find a way."
The spin duo of Ravichandran Ashwin and Yuzvendra Chahal have only managed to pick up two wickets combined, including two matches, and shelled runs at 5.52 runs per over.
The batting has also not fired for India, with Shreyas Iyer and Venkatesh Iyer struggling to hit the right chords which have hurt the side massively, failing to capitalize on good starts.
"He is a really important member of the team" - KL Rahul lauds Rishabh Pant
Rishabh Pant (81*) now also has the highest ODI score+ by an Indian wicket-keeper on South African soil.
Previously, Rahul Dravid had made 77 at Durban in 2001.
#IndvSA #INDvsSA
#SAvIND #SAvsIND
+ his 100* in the Cape Town Test is the only Test 100 by an Indian keeper in SAf.
Things have certainly not gone right for India in this series. However, KL Rahul identified a couple of positives that will help them going forward.
"The way Shikhar and Virat batted in the first game was very good, and today Rishabh batted, the way he managed the first 20 balls and then he took down the spinners. He is a really important member of the team and Shardul, too, showing us he can bat lower down and make a good contribution. Jasprit has been the standout bowler for us and Yuzi has been good today," Rahul added.
India will have very little time to rectify their mistakes and return again on Sunday for the final game of the series in Centurion.