KL Rahul puts his name on honours board at Lords
KL Rahul proved his critics wrong with an unbeaten 127 on the first day of the 2nd Test match played at the iconic Lords Cricket Ground on Thursday.
After being invited into bat by Joe Root, KL Rahul struggled
initially with good quality bowling by James Anderson and Ollie Robinson. Rohit
Sharma took the attack to Sam Curran hitting him for 4 boundaries to keep India
going. Both Indian openers showed their skills and ended the first session at
46 for 0 with rain arriving.
KL Rahul opened his arms away hitting a six off Moeen Ali.
Rohit Sharma also looked composed and completed a half-century off 83 balls. The
Indian openers made good use of the conditions putting England bowlers under
pressure. James Anderson produced a peach to dismiss Rohit Sharma ending a
solid 126 runs opening partnership. KL Rahul remained solid with his defensive technique
and reached his fifty off 137 balls.
The dependable Pujara struggle continued as he was dismissed
by Anderson. Rahul showed his class by hitting a boundary off the last ball
before tea break to help India end at 157 for 2. After the tea break, Rahul and
Virat kept momentum for India keeping the scoreboard ticking making life tough
for England.
KL Rahul kept his composure and reached his 6th
Test century off 212 balls. The England captain Root decided to take the 2nd
new ball immediately. Despite lots of play and misses, Rahul remained solid
hitting boundaries off bad deliveries. At the dying moments, Indian captain
Kohli was dismissed providing an easy catch to Joe Root. Rahul and Kohli added 117
runs for the 3rd wicket. Ajiyanka Rahane looked tentative but
remained intact.
Rahul remained not out on 127 and helped the Indian team end the
first day at 276 for 3. During the first Test at Trent Bridge, Nottingham,
Rahul opened the innings and provided stability with 97 runs opening
partnership with Rohit Sharma. He was eventually dismissed for 84.
Chasing 209 runs to win, Rahul looked in great touch hitting
boundaries before being dismissed by a beauty by Stuart Broad. The opener would
be looking to continue from where he left on the first day and help the Indian team
put enough pressure on the England team.
The previous centurion by Indian in Test matches at Lords
was by Rahane during the 2014 tour. Vinoo Mankad, Dilip Vengsakar 3 centuries, Rahul
Dravid, Ravi Shastri, Ajit Agarkar, Mohammad Azharuddin, Gundappa Vishwanth,
Sourav Ganguly are other Indian batsmen to hit Test centuries at iconic stadium.
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