[Watch] KL Rahul trains hard in the nets ahead of Sri Lanka series
Indian cricketer KL Rahul shared a video on Instagram of him doing some batting practice ahead of the Sri Lanka series On Wednesday, July 24. The Men in Blue are set to face Sri Lanka in a three-game T20I series, followed by a three-match ODI series.
Rahul continues to be absent from the T20 squad but remains an integral part of the ODI team. He will be seen in action for India for the first time after he played in a Test match against England earlier this year.
The keeper-batter led India in the three-match ODI series against South Africa in December 2023, which the Men in Blue won 2-1. Rahul scored 77 runs in two innings. The Karnataka batter is putting in a lot of work in preparation for the Sri Lankan series.
Here’s the video shared by KL:
Rahul was last in action during the IPL 2024. The Indian batter scored 520 in 14 matches at an average of 37.14 and a strike rate of 136.1. KL often came under scrutiny for his strike rate during the tournament.
Additionally, he got into a heated exchange with Sanjiv Goenka, the owner of the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), who expressed his displeasure with Rahul after the team's loss to SunRisers Hyderabad.
The 2024 edition marked the first time LSG failed to make the playoffs since they were introduced in the IPL in 2022.
"It’s going to be a hard one" - Robin Uthappa on India’s choice between KL Rahul and Rishab Pant
Former Indian batter Robin Uthappa said that it would be a tough call for Rohit Sharma and Indian coach Gautam Gambhir to choose between KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant. According to Uthappa, KL had been the first-choice keeper in ODIs for some time while Pant brings the X factor with him.
"Both have been incredible and their numbers have been really good. Rahul’s numbers in ODI cricket have been exceptional and Pant has just had an incredible T20 World Cup," Robin said.
"His personal journey has been quite incredible over the last two and a half years. So it’s a tough choice. To be in Gambhir and Rohit’s shoes, it’s going to be a hard one,” he added (as quoted by Khel Now).
The first game of the ODI series will take place on Friday, August 2, in Colombo.