Delhi Capitals (DC) mentor Kevin Pietersen said KL Rahul is the ideal choice for India’s No. 4 spot in T20Is. After joining the franchise for Rs 14 crore, the right-handed batter has delivered strong performances, scoring 364 runs in eight games at a strike rate of 146.18 and an average of 60.66, including three half-centuries.
Rahul, who has two T20I centuries for India, has not featured for the national side since the T20 World Cup 2022 semi-final against England at the Adelaide Oval. Speaking after DC’s six-wicket loss to Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) on Sunday, Pietersen emphasised that, given Rahul’s current form, he deserves a comeback to the Indian team.
“I would back KL at four for India in T20 cricket. I think you guys have got plenty of opening batters. You’ve got Rohit (Sharma), you’ve got Surya (Suryakumar Yadav) who bats at the top, you’ve got all of these guys. But the way that KL Rahul is playing cricket now — he would be my first choice to bat at four and keep wicket for India,” Pietersen was quoted as saying in the post-match press conference.
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Rahul scored 41 runs off 39 balls, hitting three fours, to help DC post 162 for eight in 20 overs. However, his efforts went in vain as RCB chased down the target with nine balls to spare.
“Rahul is so positive”
Pietersen praised Rahul for his positive approach and highlighted his strong performances in the Champions Trophy, where he amassed 140 runs at an average of 140, with a top score of 42* against Australia in Dubai.
Pietersen added that he has had discussions with Rahul about making adjustments to his technique to better handle the demands of T20 cricket.
“I don’t think that they’ve changed their way necessarily just since I’ve joined the franchise. They changed — certainly KL has been playing in a very positive manner since late last year, mid to late last year. We saw how he finished off a couple of the games for India and almost sealed the deal for you guys in the Champions Trophy in Dubai,” Pietersen said.
“But I’ve had a lot of incredibly brilliant conversations with him about batting — a lot of deep and meaningful conversations, because when you grow up as a youngster like he did, and you get taught defense, elbow up, play in the V — and then all of a sudden, in your 30s, you’ve got to change it, and you’ve got to become a different kind of player for a different format which is evolving all the time — it’s very, very difficult.
“So the way that he has accepted that he’s needed to change, the way that he has changed, is of great, great credit to the person that he is. He is so positive — the way that he practises, the way that he trains, the way he thinks about the game, and also the way that he talks about the game. So that’s KL,” Pietersen added.
DC will next be up against Ajinkya Rahane’s Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on April 29 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium.
