Besides sharing the same name and originating from the same city of Bengaluru, former India fast bowler Zaheer Khan sees a few similarities between batsman KL Rahul and ex-India captain Rahul Dravid. Zaheer, who played a lot with and under Dravid's captaincy drew comparison between the two players after Rahul, 29, opened the innings for India and did a great job top-scoring for India with 84 in the first Test against England.
Given how Rahul has been Virat Kohli's go-to man for India, and stepping up to take up different responsibilities – such as shuffling up and down the batting order and keeping wicket, when need be, Zaheer reckons there are traits that are common between Dravid and Rahul.
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"'That' Rahul also held the wicketkeeping gloves for the team and this Rahul did the same as well. It could either be the Bangalore connection or the connection of their names but he's very talented too," Zaheer said on Cricbuzz.
"Rahul Dravid has done so much for India that this show won't suffice to talk about it. But yes, seeing such a role model who has done so much for the team compared to him and seeing that he's being looked at with the same eyes, KL Rahul would be very happy."
Rahul, who last played a Test before Nottingham in August of 2019, was drafted into the Playing XI after opening batsman Mayank Agarwal was ruled out due to a concussion. With Shubman Gill already back home, Agarwal injured and Prithvi Shaw having just reached England, Rahul was talked with the responsibility of opening the innings along with Rohit Sharma, and the India batsman answered the challenge with aplomb, keeping the innings steady with a 12th Test fifty. Zaheer feels as the series progresses, Rahul will be the player to watch out for.
{{/usCountry}}Rahul, who last played a Test before Nottingham in August of 2019, was drafted into the Playing XI after opening batsman Mayank Agarwal was ruled out due to a concussion. With Shubman Gill already back home, Agarwal injured and Prithvi Shaw having just reached England, Rahul was talked with the responsibility of opening the innings along with Rohit Sharma, and the India batsman answered the challenge with aplomb, keeping the innings steady with a 12th Test fifty. Zaheer feels as the series progresses, Rahul will be the player to watch out for.
{{/usCountry}}"KL Rahul will be talked about a lot throughout this series. The way he has utilized the opportunity, the application he has shown, the way he's leaving balls and even some of the cover drives he has played, the head position and the perfect lean, he surely deserves praise," Zaheer added.