Gargi Raut at Old Trafford
On Day 4 of the fourth Test match at the Old Trafford, with the series hanging in balance, India having conceded 669 runs and down two wickets in consecutive deliveries, KL Rahul stood at the non-strikers end, head down, tapping the pitch, knowing he can’t change the game from where he stood even if he wanted to. And just when it seemed like the match was poised for a quick finish Rahul stood tall, calm, composed and unbending, alongside skipper Shubman Gill that evoked memories of another Rahul from a different era.
Throughout Rahul’s career, especially in the recent past, the batter has been criticised for “crumbling” under pressure. But in a series where Rahul had the clarity he deserved, about his batting position and the security of not being sent up and down the order at the convenience of other batters, Rahul blossomed into his own. Almost like the player he promised to be when he first broke through. Free from the insecurity that crept into his game over the years, Rahul has finally looked settled.
On Day 4, with Ben Stokes unable to bowl, England’s bowling attack went flat like a good house lager that had been left out for too long. Rahul and Gill batted through 63 overs, with a partnership of 174 at stumps, two sessions without a wicket. Rahul’s unbeaten 87 off 207 balls was a masterclass in restraint and technique, every shot, every leave, every block was like a page out of Dravid’s playbook.
And it’s not just the composure that Rahul has displayed throughout the series that beg us to draw the comparison to Rahul Dravid, it is also the numbers. Rahul has now faced 978 deliveries in this series, surpassing Dravid’s 2011 tally and creeping closer to his monumental 1336-ball epic in 2002. Only eight openers have ever faced over 1000 deliveries in an England series, and Rahul is within touching distance of that milestone.
“KL Rahul can’t take pressure” is a recurring sentence on social media, yet his Manchester innings has proved every critic wrong. India needed someone to absorb the pressure, handle the game with fragility and mettle; Rahul answered with an innings of immense mental fortitude, under insurmountable scoreboard pressure. India never needed flashy scores or strokes, India needed someone to go out there and deny England momentum, especially without their breakthrough bowler Stokes.
Captain Gill stands tall on the other end, and is excellent company to Rahul. Their 28- minute partnership has been one of the most resilient displays of Test cricket batting the modern era has seen. While England remain favourites to clinch not only the game but also the series, the second new-ball looming and Stokes conserving himself for it, India’s hopes of salvaging a draw rest squarely on Rahul’s shoulders. Whether he can take this vigil into a final-day escape act remains to be seen. But for now, at Old Trafford, KL Rahul has offered a throwback to the grit and grace of Dravid, and in doing so, has kept India’s flickering hopes alive.
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