KL Rahul was a source of stability for India for much of the first day of their first Test against Sri Lanka before he retired hurt at a score of 77 in 162 balls. Batting coach Sitanshu Kotak has now said that the opener should be able to bat on Day 2 and that he went off due to cramps.
“KL batted really well. I think he was getting only cramps. So by the end of the day, he was fine. Probably once you start getting cramps, you get it in the hamstring, you get it in the groin, you get it in your hand,” Kotak told reporters at the end of the day. “But at the moment he looks absolutely fine. So he should be good to go tomorrow,” he said.
Rahul had a 47-run opening stand with Yashasvi Jaiswal which came in 66 balls, before an almighty mix-up between them resulted in the latter being run-out. He then shared a 150-run stand with Devdutt Padikkal for the second wicket before walking off the field. Kotak was delighted to see the flexibility in Rahul’s game – batting down the order in white ball formats and opening in Test cricket.
“See, he is someone, when he plays in one-day (match) as if you have seen him, he bats at number 6 or 5. So when you are a senior batsman, and if you are open to bat at any number and help the team, I think that is a great player to have.
“So for a team, he is someone who is very useful. So in a red ball match he opens, in a one-day match he bats wherever required. Now, the way he is batting, he is taking a lot of responsibilities, he is trying to create a lot of partnerships, and that is something really good to have, and he has been very, very consistent,” he added.
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