'Keep me in playing XI, ready to be flexible': KL Rahul eager to return to T20I ahead of World Cup

KL Rahul has had a great run in international cricket since his return from injury during the Asia Cup 2023 edition. He scored a hundred in his first appearance in the continental tournament, eventually won by India in Sri Lanka. He amassed 452 runs in the home ODI World Cup (with a century and two fifties) and scored a majestic 101 in India's just-concluded two-match Test series opener versus South Africa, in Centurion.

Rahul has said that he is open to being flexible in the batting order. Asked if he wants to comeback in the T20I setup, the wicketkeeper-batter stated that he simply wants to keepplaying more and more and helping his team wingames.

'Keep me in the XI, wherever you want to play me, I will'

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After India's Cape Town Test win over SA, on Thursday (Jan 4), Rahul told Star Sports, "When they ask me to do any job, I just tell them 'keep me in the XI, wherever you want to play me, I will'. I want to play more and more matches. Unfortunately, because of injuries, I have missed a lot of matches, not just this injury, I have been injured quite a lot."

He further said, "Looking back, I am 31 now, but I have been playing since I was 22 for the country. But, if you look at it, I have not played a lot of matches. When Vijay and Shikhar were playing in Tests, and when Rohit and Shikhar were playing in ODI cricket, I had to wait for a lot of time. And when I got my chances, I got injured. So I have really missed out on a lot of cricket.

"I am in a mind space where I am open to playing anywhere, but I just want to play matches. I just want to do well for my country and go and enjoy my game in the middle," Rahul added.

In T20Is, Rahul has2,265 runs in72 matches at a strike rate of 139.12. He, however, managed only 128 runs in six games during India'sT20 WC run in Australia in 2022. His strike rate was an ordinary120.75 and, hence, he has not been given a chancesince then (along with seniors Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli).

Given the Ajit Agarkar-led BCCI selectors are set to announce the Indiansquad for the home T20Is versus Afghanistan,over the weekend, it remains to be seen if Rahul returns to the team. It has been widely reported that Rahul is keen to bat in the middle-order across formats. For that, he is even keen to play in the middle-order for Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in IPL 2024, with an eye on the 2024 T20 WC in West Indies and USA.

Rahul has enough experience batting in the middle-order. He has excelled in that positionin the ODIs and even did well in the recently concluded SA Tests.

He pointed out, "First time, I think I got that role in 2017 when we toured Sri Lanka. I got 2 to 3 chances, but I didn't really do well and after that I was out of the team. At No. 4 and No. 5, what I found the most difficult is, that when I go in and I am unsettled, everyone else around me is settled. They know how the pitch is playing and they know the tempo of the game. I have to go and try and adjust to that scenario. That was the hardest thing for me."

"I won't say playing against the new ball is easy. But, at times, the fast bowler will try a few things and you get a loose ball. But at No. 5, you rarely get something like that. So, it has helped me to keep myself a little bit calmer and adjust to the situation of the game. If I think that way, it becomes easy. If I am thinking about my own game, then it becomes difficult," he added.

It will be interesting to see if Rahul is included in the T20I setup going forward. Currently, he is in superb form in the longer formats.