Living up to proclamations of talent is never easy, but K.L. Rahul has shown that he can fulfil those expectations. He missed a double century by a hair’s breadth, but his 199 (311b, 16x4, 3x6) — a fourth Test ton that blended stability, strength and style — was the cornerstone of India’s first innings score of 391 for four against England.
The opener almost batted through the third day of the fifth Test here at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium. The Sunday crowd, having trooped in to savour Virat Kohli’s brilliance, was equally enamoured with the centurion as cries of ‘Rahul, Rahul’ rent the air.
The 24-year-old, with roots in Mangaluru, remained as cool as a gadbad (a favourite ice-cream variant in that coastal town).
The only time he slipped, while attempting to score off Adil Rashid’s delivery that was quite wide, Rahul watched the ball land in Jos Buttler’s palms at point. The seconds stretched as he held his head, and the fans theirs.
The value of his knock, however, was much more than a 200. Crucially, he also forged a 161-run fourth-wicket partnership, spread across 251 balls, with Karun Nair (71 batting) to strengthen India’s pursuit of England’s 477.
It was Rahul all the way right from the morning when India resumed at 60 for no loss.
Whetting his appetite
He whetted his appetite, slamming two sixes off debutant left-arm spinner Liam Dawson. The Karnataka batsman used his feet well, either moving forward to loft and rocking back to pull.
His partner Parthiv Patel was equally enterprising. Rahul on-drove Stuart Broad while Parthiv lofted off-spinner Moeen Ali and cover-drove Rashid.
Both batsmen reached their fifties, and the shots kept getting better.
The flick off the hips apart from the sweeps — conventional, slog and reverse — were all unleashed. The right-left mix of Rahul and Parthiv, and their contrasting heights, meant that the bowlers had to constantly recalibrate their angles and lengths.
Against the run of play, Parthiv tried to force Moeen towards the on-side and popped up a leading edge.
The 152-run first-wicket partnership lasted 41.5 overs as the host moved to 173 for one at lunch. The first session had yielded 113 runs with a run-rate of over four.
Rousing reception
Seen in that light, Pujara’s dismissal in the third over after lunch seemed to be a blip. He thrust his bat to Ben Stokes and paid the price.
The crowd clapped feebly and then raised the decibel levels to a higher pitch, a welcome usually reserved for eternal favourite Sachin Tendulkar.
His successor at No. 4 — Kohli — walked in at 12.27 p.m. and the venue was abuzz.
With his skipper for company, Rahul reached his century.
The intended single to mid-wicket turned out to be a three, thanks to a fielding lapse, and soon fists were clenched, the bat was raised and Kohli hugged him.
England, though, stemmed the runs and three successive maidens were bowled by Stokes, Dawson and Broad.
That little period of run-denial multiplied the pressure and Kohli swatted Broad straight to the waiting fielder at short-cover. The stands lapsed into stunned silence.
At 211 for three, India needed to stabilise. Rahul, who continued to be the pivot, boosted the confidence of his Karnataka teammate Karun who gradually found his groove, driving Broad and pulling Rashid.
An alliance took shape and at tea, India moved to 256 for three.
The second session witnessed a relatively sedate 83 runs at 3.19, but importantly, Rahul was still at the crease.
Post-tea, he and Karun extended and embellished their good work. The latter had his lucky streaks as a catch eluded a diving Cook and
another fell short of Moeen off his own bowling.
After Rahul fell, the fans were enthused to see M. Vijay stride out to bat.
The local-boy seemed at ease despite a bruised left-shoulder.
He and Karun have more work to do on Monday as India, still adrift by 86 runs, hopes to bridge the deficit and gain a sizeable lead.
By then, Rahul should have made his peace with that one run he missed.
