BGT: Controlled aggression, finding joy in batting for long bring KL Rahul big runs

New Delhi: A ten-year work anniversary in the corporate world warrants a major celebration. The path of completing ten years in a career involves a multitude of dealing with tales of struggles and feeling the joy of victories coming through sheer perseverance and grit.

When Thursday arrives, KL Rahul will be celebrating a ten-year work anniversary of his kind, but on the field when the Boxing Day Test against Australia begins at a packed Melbourne Cricket Ground, the same place where he made his debut as India Test cap no. 284 in 2014.

Most people feel settled in their careers after ten years, but Rahul’s a different story. His Test career has travelled a wide musical range – from hitting high notes to being at low notes, while being inconsistent in between.

The stats back this up: 56 matches, 3216 runs, and a 34.58 average—figures frequently cited on social media, especially when he doesn’t score big runs. Previously, Rahul’s continued presence in the Test team baffled cricket fans, despite changes in captain, coach, and selection panels.

Yet, what makes Rahul a useful Test player is his success in overseas matches and his ability to adapt to any situation. Seven of his eight Test hundreds have come outside India. Six of them came outside Asia, and three of them came in a winning cause.

First-choice opener injured and want someone? Get Rahul in. Want a middle-order batter who can also keep if needed? Get Rahul in. Need a floater if someone from top three is unavailable? Get Rahul in. Require a captain with regular skipper injured? Get Rahul in.

Rahul’s participation in the five-match Test series in Australia was questionable before the tour, particularly following his omission from the playing eleven after the Bengaluru Test against New Zealand. As per a source close to the cricketer, Rahul himself asked for playing the second India A game against Australia A at the MCG in a bid to acclimatise himself to the conditions on offer.

Though that didn’t go exactly as per plan, including a ball from Corey Rocchiccioli hitting the stumps after ricocheting off his pad (a proof of when bad luck and bad leave combine), Rahul’s trip to Australia since then has taken a pretty productive turn. He has been India’s top run-scorer in the series so far with 235 runs in three games at an average of 47.

Unlike the other Indian batters, Rahul, with a precise forward stride and being deep in the crease, has allowed for balls to come at him and play them right under his eyelid with soft hands and a very still head position. He has kept his bat close to the body and been impeccable in leaving a lot of deliveries outside the off-stump, thus forcing bowlers to do something different.

In this patient process of batting for time, Rahul has capitalised on loose deliveries, especially the ones with width or that are over-pitched, thus giving him the runs he’s on the lookout for. In martial arts, tennis, and K-9 training, controlled aggression is when a person is able to regulate when to be aggressive and when to be defensive.

It’s safe to say that Rahul has channelled this controlled aggression theory into his batting on the tour of Australia. Speaking to reporters after making 84 in Brisbane, Rahul stated his excellent returns have been down to tightening up his defence in first 30 overs and then capitalise on the deliveries once the Kookaburra ball’s movement has gone down. (IANS)

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