[In Pictures] KL Rahul poses with his wife Athiya Shetty at a serene location in Cape Town
Team India wicket-keeper batter KL Rahul recently posed for a couple of pictures at a serene location in Cape Town during his time away from the field, along with his wife, Athiya Shetty.
The two-match series ended in a 1-1 draw as both teams shared the trophy on Thursday, January 4. South Africa won the first Test in Centurion by innings and 32 runs in three days. India then made a resounding comeback and beat South Africa by seven wickets inside two days in Cape Town to level the series.
It was a good series for KL Rahul, who played as a wicket-keeper batter in the middle-order for the first time in his Test career. Batting at number six, he hit a magnificent century in the first innings of the Centurion Test and impressed everyone in the new role.
He was also decent behind the wickets as a keeper and did almost everything right until he dropped a simple catch of Aiden Markram in the second Test. It helped Markram finish his century and add a few more runs to the eventual target of India.
As the Test in Cape Town ended in just two days, KL Rahul went out and enjoyed the scenic locations in the city along with Athiya Shetty. He gave a glimpse to his fans by sharing photos on his Instagram handle.
"When they ask me to do any job, I just tell them to play me in the XI" - KL Rahul on being asked to play in different roles by the management
During an interaction on Star Sports after the second Test against South Africa, KL Rahul opened up about his exchange with team management on playing different roles across formats. Rahul revealed that he is always open to their ideas and is happy as long as they accommodate him in the team. On the matter, he said:
"When they ask me to do any job, I just tell them to play me in the XI, wherever they play me. I want to play matches. Unfortunately, I have missed a lot of matches because of injury. Not just this injury (thigh injury he sustained in IPL 2023) but I have been injured quite a lot. Looking back, I am 31 now but have been playing for the country since I was 22."
The 31-year-old continued:
"However, if you see the matches, I haven't played much. Obviously, I had to wait my turn when (Murali) Vijay and Shikhar (Dhawan) were playing, and then Rohit (Sharma) and Shikhar were playing in ODI cricket. So I had to wait for a lot of time and when I used to get chances, I used to get injured. So I have really missed out on a lot of cricket."
Do you think KL Rahul should play in middle-order in the T20 format after his success there in the other two formats? Let us know your views in the comments section.