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A giver of hope, a reviver of lost chances, a man who steadies a fledgling team score and a booster of his side's chances, KL Rahul is all this and more. At times, his sense of timing lends fluidity and music to an innings and on other occasions, his patience reminds one of the powers of a monk. KL Rahul, 61 Tests and 107 innings, for India thus far, is a reminder that one must treat cricket's greatest format with much respect and also of the fact that in life, patience is a great virtue that often tests the best of us. Thus far, the way KL Rahul has played, he has impressed his staunchest critics and reminded fans that despite Indian cricket existing in this post-Dravid era, the ability to stand strong amid pressure isn't something that's relegated to the past. And that it is very much present in a few of India's contemporary names as well, who hold on strongly to cricket's most arduous format. There's much that Rahul has already done, there's lots that one hopes he will continue to do in what lies ahead. Let us dive into some impressive stats to understand how KL Rahul stands on the cusp of a record feat.
What big personal milestone is KL Rahul approaching in Test cricket?
Thus far, playing all three formats in international cricket for his country, KL Rahul stands against an impressive run tally that at present- reads 8940 international runs.
What's to be duly noted here is how despertely close the technically correct and reliable Indian batter is to 9,000 international runs.
Having scored two impressive centuries already in the series, including a brilliant knock of 100 runs, to be precise at Lord's, KL Rahul has addressed his staunch critics, who often questions his ability to deliver.
Having said that, in order to reach 9,000 Test match runs, KL Rahul needs just 60 more runs.
What is KL Rahul's highest Test-series run tally as on date?
Back in the 2016-17 cricket summer, KL Rahul batted in imperious fashion against Australia, scoring 393 runs from just 4 Tests and 7 innings, on the whole. So fluent and consistent was he from the bat back then that his average in that series, whilst facing bowlers like Starc and Lyon, was north of 65.
That particular series was just the seventh ever Test series of the solid right hander's career.
But it could be argued, that big run scoring was, at that time, not such a big hurdle for the mild-mannered man as he had already compiled personal best scores like the 158 against the West Indies and that famous 199 against England much earlier.
Rahul, who has currently scored 10 career centuries in red-ball duties for India, had already hit 4 tons before his purple patch in the Australia series.
Where does KL Rahul stand as of now in the England series?
From Tests played at Headingley, which was the first Test, followed by games at Edgbaston and Lord's, KL Rahul has taken just 6 Test knocks to score 375 odd runs. That is no ordinary tally; it's the second highest tally of runs that KL Rahul has ever achieved in a bilateral series. His previous best came back in 2017, which was against Australia, wherein he came desperately close to scoring 400 runs in a single series.
What is inspirational and so positive about Rahul is the fact that he is currently scoring runs at an average of 62, which is a tall indication of his talent in scoring especially away from home.
What record has KL Rahul already marked in his Test career given the current England series?
By the time, the Lord's Test got over, which was the third contest in the ongoing series, KL Rahul had already scored 375 runs in the existing contests, which meant he had gone past the 300-run tally only for the third time in his career.
The other two previous occasions, where the man from Bangalore stood tall and went past 300 runs in series was- once against Australia in 2017 (393 runs) and against England in 2021 (315 runs).
Having said that, he also came tremendously close to accumulating 300 runs on another occasion; scoring 299, to be precise, against England in 2018-19. But it wasn't a very successful series in terms of scoring lots of runs in big numbers. KL's batting average during those contests stood at 29.
FAQs:
What milestone is KL Rahul on the verge of reaching?
KL Rahul is fast approaching 9,500 international run tally mark, with 9348 runs scored at present.
What is the highest Test series run tally that KL Rahul has achieved as on date?
Thus far, KL Rahul has scored 393 Test runs from 4 Tests against Australia. Right now, with 2 Tests and hopefully, 4 innings to go, he can add more to his 375 run tally versus England.
