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Speaking on 25 Questions by ESPNCricinfo, KL Rahul was asked which bowler he hates facing in the nets, to which the wicketkeeper answered Mohammed Shami.
Not Jasprit Bumrah! KL Rahul Says He Hates Facing This Indian Bowler In The Nets (Picture credit: AP)
Star India wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul has revealed that he hates facing Mohammed Shami in the nets, admitting that the pacer makes it hard for batters to face him not just on-field but during practice sessions as well.
Speaking on 25 Questions by ESPNCricinfo, Rahul was asked which bowler he hates facing in the nets, to which the wicketkeeper answered Shami, with a grin on his face.
Notably, numbers suggest that Shami has had an upper hand over Rahul in T20s. The latter has scored just 31 runs off 28 deliveries from Shami in three seasons of the Indian Premier League while being dismissed twice in IPL 2022 when Rahul’s Lucknow Super Giants faced eventual champions Gujarat Titans.
During the interview, Rahul was also asked which bowler has given him sleepless nights, to which he replied with star Afghanistan spinner Rashid Khan’s name.
Having faced each other on just four occasions in international cricket, the Afghan spinner managed to dismiss Rahul once during a Super 4 game at the 2018 Asia Cup in Dubai, when the latter could score just a single off the six deliveries from Rashid.
In T20s, Rashid has got an upper hand on Rahul, much like Shami. Off the 47 deliveries that the latter has faced off the Afghan spinner, he has scored just 40 runs while being dismissed thrice. Two of those dismissals came in IPL 2018.
Asked which three players across countries he would definitely have in his T20 XI, Rahul named ace India pacer Jasprit Bumrah, T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav and Windies’ Nicholas Pooran.
Asked which shot he would like to steal from another batter, Rahul answered that he would want to have Virat Kohli’s flick shot. The wicketkeeper also admitted that the pitch at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai was one of the hardest to keep wickets on in his career, thanks to the turn it produces.
Asked which Test innings of his he could watch every ball of, Rahul said that it would be his 123-run knock against South Africa in Centurion in 2021. Riding on his brilliant knock, India thrashed the hosts by 113 runs in the opening Test of the three-match series.
