KL Rahul scored just nine runs against South Africa in Perth© AFP
Opening batter KL Rahul has been out-of-form in the ongoing T20 World Cup and he registered yet another low score against South Africa, scoring just 9 runs off 14 balls. In the three matches that India have played so far, Rahul has recorded scores of 4,9 and 9. The right-handed batter has looked completely out of sorts, and he has not been able to even rotate the strike constantly. Now, former India captain Sunil Gavaskar has said that there is a need for mental conditioning coach Paddy Upton to step in and help increase the confidence of the batter
“We have Paddy Upton as the mental conditioning coach and if he has not done anything with him. While the batting coach can tell him his mistakes, there is a need for the mental conditioning coach to talk with the player to increase his confidence. He should tell Rahul that he has got the talent and he can score big runs,” Gavaskar said on Sports Tak.
“Look, you have just played three matches and you have to play a total of 5 matches in the Super 12 stage. You do not have any other opener, I do not think you have an opener who can take the place of Rahul. So you need to show patience with him, we know what he can do when he is in full flow. I think some one needs to have a word with him,” he added.
Temba Bavuma-led South Africa displayed an all-round performance to defeat India by five wickets in the T20 World Cup Group 2 Super 12 match on Sunday at Optus Stadium, Perth.
After Rohit Sharma and co opted to bat first, the Proteas rattled the side through pace, and the likes of Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli and Hardik Pandya were dismissed cheaply.
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Suryakumar Yadav was the only bright star with the bat in hand as he played a knock of 68 runs off just 40 balls with the help of 6 fours and 3 sixes.
Chasing 134, Aiden Markram and David Miller hit 50s for South Africa and the Proteas chased down the target with five wickets in hand and two balls to spare.
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