KL Rahul still fighting his mental demons following his comeback to the Test squad

After going through a harrowing three months with his shoulder injury and missing out the IPL, the Champions Trophy and the tour to West Indies, KL Rahul is back in business. The Bangalorean was forced to go through a rehabilitation programme to mend his shoulder after undergoing a surgery. Rahul had injured his shoulder during the Dharamshala Test against Australia this year and has been out of action ever since.

After being inducted into the squad for the tour to Sri Lanka, the opening batter played his first match, a preparatory game in the island against the Sri Lankan Board President’s XI. He was in his happiest spirits when he found himself striking the ball well. But subconsciously, the fear of getting injured again is pulling him back. The nervousness of whether his body can cope up with the grind which will unfold in the coming days is creeping slowly into him.

But Rahul is determined to fight his demons and keep them away. He is going to make this opportunity count and get back to his elements.

Speaks his mind

“Yes. I am (nervous). The body is still unsure and it keeps holding me back every time. That’s the biggest challenge coming back from injury. You know you are physically fit and you have done everything you can, worked really hard, you are feeling stronger, you are feeling fitter. But the mind always tells you what if it happens again, what if you have to go through the same grind for three months, what if your shoulder is not ready, what if you come back early? The fear is obviously there, but I will fight it and I will overcome that,” Rahul said.

After cracking a 58-ball 54 in the practice game, he heaved a sigh of relief and breathed happiness. The right-hander talked about how his post-recovery practice game went about.

Happy to make a comeback

“I haven’t been happier ever in my life. It has been quite a tough time away from cricket, to be away from the thing you loved the most. I was middling the ball from ball one, hit a few boundaries, rotated the strike and not a lot of balls best my bat. Playing in the nets is an entirely different thing and going out there in the middle is a completely different challenge,” KL added.

With the first Test due to kick off at Galle on 26th July, Rahul will join hands with either Shikhar Dhawan or Abhinav Mukund as openers, since his usual partner Murali Vijay is out of action with a wrist injury. The Test series will be a litmus test for the right-hander and he will look forward to playing every Test match and mark a sublime comeback.