ENG vs IND: "Lot of people wouldn’t have done that"- Abhishek Nayar reveals mantra behind KL Rahul's success in the England series

KL Rahul finished as India’s second-highest run-scorer in the ENG vs IND test series.

Former India assistant coach Abhishek Nayar has heaped praise on KL Rahul for his outstanding performance in the ongoing test series against England. He also revealed that the right-hander started preparing for the England tour immediately after the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025.

KL Rahul is the second-highest run-scorer in the series after Shubman Gill (754). At an average of 53.20, the right-handed batsman has mustered 532 runs in 10 innings. He also hammered two centuries and two half-centuries.

Rahul played a 137-run knock in the opening test at Headingley and then played an innings of 100 runs in the third test at The Lord’s. In the ongoing fifth test at The Oval, he got out cheaply for 14 runs and seven runs in both innings. His runs came while opening the batting. He was given the role after Rohit Sharma retired from test cricket.

He has worked very, very hard: Abhishek Nayar hails KL Rahul

While speaking to PTI, Nayar said that Rahul worked very hard to prepare for the England test series. He revealed that Rahul started preparations for the series immediately after IPL 2025.

“He has worked very, very hard. There are a very, very few people who know this that after the birth of his child he was in the IPL (and) he came back immediately. He started preparing for the (England) Test series while a lot of people wouldn’t have done that. He knew the importance of this series, he understood it”, Nayar said.

“And every minute post the last game that he played in the IPL, was about how he can do well in this Test series, so it’s great to see him do well there and get the recognition that he rightly deserves being the guy who’s done all the dirty jobs and still managed to perform at every every number in that batting order,” he added.

Nayar also highlighted Rahul has changed his batting technique and its benefits are visible in the series.

“I can’t talk about the changes that I’ve seen in KL Rahul. I can’t, because then it’s out there and the effectiveness goes down a lot. All I can say is that, whatever the changes are, they have really worked. Sometimes, I always say in a cricketer’s journey and in a team’s journey, things need to click. You need a bit of the rub of the green. I think he’s had that as well,” he said.

Notably, Rahul has credited Nayar for helping him to improve his batting approach during the latter’s tenure as India’s assistant coach. Recently, Nayar was appointed as the head coach of the UP Warriorz team in the Women’s Premier League (WPL).

Talking about the Oval test, India have set a target of 374 runs for England. At lunch on day four, England reached 164/3. England lead the series 2-1, and India aim to end the series in a draw with a victory in the fifth test.

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