File photo of KL Rahul
KL Rahul has surely shown quite early in his career that he is capable of being a leader and a performer at the same time. Being the captain of Kings XI Punjab in IPL 2020, the right-handed batsman has managed to tick many boxes while being the Orange Cap holder and spiriting his side back in the reckoning for their maiden title.
Being head and shoulder above others, Rahul has so amassed 595 runs in the season in 12 games while hitting a ton and five half-centuries. However, leading his side to five wins on the trot, that included big wins over mighty rivals such Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals, placing them inside top four with two games to go.
As his side now stands a strong chance of making it to the play-off, Rahul’s efforts were handsomely rewarded by Sourav Ganguly-led BCCI, who promoted the wicketkeeper-batsman as the vice captain of India for the white-ball format.
Speaking on his new role with Team India, Rahul said he never saw it coming and is a happy man.
“A very happy and proud moment; I wasn’t expecting that (vice-captaincy of Team India). I am looking forward to responsibility and challenge; trying to do the best I can for the country. That’s always been the top priority for me; winning matches for my country and any team that I play for,” he said on KXIP’s official Twitter handle.
Rahul further added that he doesn’t intend to get carried away with the news and wants to keep his focus on KXIP for the next two weeks.
“Next couple of weeks (with KXIP) are most important to me. And once that’s done, the next two months (in Australia) will be most important for me. It’s about taking it one game at a time,” he concluded.
