The 2019 World Cup ended in a heartbreak for India. Having finished the league stage as the No. 1 team at the top of the points table, with their only defeat coming against England, India were outplayed by New Zealand in the first semi-final at the Old Trafford stadium in Manchester. New Zealand had posted 239/8, in reply to which India fell short by 18 runs, ending Virat Kohli’s team’s robust run in the tournament. (Also Follow: IPL 2022 Full Coverage)
Despite battling injuries, India were ahead of every other team when the league stage ended. They were dealt an early blow when Shikhar Dhawan endured a fractured wrist and had to be ruled out. Later, Vijay Shankar was ruled out to an ankle injury and Rishabh Pant was called up. Dhawan’s injury meant that KL Rahul, who batted No. 4 in India’s first two matches, was promoted to open with Rohit Sharma, and he responded well with 361 runs from 9 matches including two fifties and a century.
However, right after the World Cup, with India supposed to tour West Indies, Rahul was dropped, an experience which the star batter weighed in on. Calling the experience frustrating, Rahul revealed how he found comfort in Chris Gayle to get over the setback.
“I remember in 2019, I think we played the World Cup and right after it, we went to the West Indies for a series. I played the World Cup, I did decently well and then we went into the series and I got dropped. I was messaging him, he said ‘Come by the pool. I’m having a drink’. It was his 300th game the next day so he was very happy and he had some friends over. So I went. I was by the pool. He came, sat with me, spoke to me that why are you not playing,” Rahul told India actor, television and cricket presenter Gaurav Kapur on his famous YouTube Show ‘Breakfast with Champions’.
Rahul, currently captaining the Lucknow Super Giants in IPL 2022, revealed that getting dropped after doing reasonably in the World Cup was a frustrating experience for him but explained how the West Indies great’s advice helped him get a better prospect.
“You know, I obviously was frustrated because I played the World Cup and I’m not playing this. Makes no sense. So, I was just talking to him and he’s like ‘See you can always say that you’re not playing because of 100 other reasons but it’s in your hands whether you play or not. If 70 is not enough, get 150. If you are getting 150, get 200 if that’s not enough. That’s how you need to look at things. If a 600-run IPL season is not enough, then get 800. Or like you’re getting 50s, 60s in the World Cup, you should have converted that and gotten 100-120s. Then no one has the power to drop you’,” he added.