Rahul puts India in command

FOR the entirety of the morning session on Friday, an English gentleman was immortalising the vast expanse of the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium. Next to the dugout reserved for the photographers, the artist with an apron -- possibly in his 40s -- was using broad strokes to paint the ground.

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While he was using the blank white canvas in front of him to paint the greens, KL Rahul was using the green canvas of the ground to compile a masterpiece of his own. Rahul is one of those batters who will continue to polarise the fan base -- he’s never far away from attracting the sort of white noise that Indian cricketers are forced to live with -- but there’s no doubt about his value to the team.

He may no longer figure in the scheme of things in the shortest format (his last match remains the semifinal against England at the World Cup in 2022) but is an integral part of the team in both the longer formats. After doubling up as a wicket-keeper in South Africa, the hosts, recognising what he brings to the team as a batter alone, wanted to lighten his burden.

Watching Rahul go about his business against inexperienced spinners was in stark contrast to seeing Shubman Gill during a slightly torturous 66-ball 23. The No. 4 was easy on the eye, and had multiple options to either get away from strike or punish ‘hit-me-balls (there were several of them)’. Gill, on the other hand, kept going with hard hands and didn’t have enough safe pressure-releasing shots.