“If anyone messages me for match tickets, I am not going to respond” - KL Rahul’s cheeky declaration for family and friends

KL Rahul, Team India’s captain for the first two ODIs against Australia, has made it clear that he is not going to entertain any requests for match tickets even if those come from family and friends. The batter stated that his sole focus as of now is on cricket.

India beat Australia by five wickets in the opening ODI in Mohali to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series. They will look to clinch the series by winning the second match in Indore on Sunday.

Ahead of the second ODI, Rahul made a cheeky comment and stated that he wouldn’t be responding to queries for match tickets.

“If anyone messages me for match tickets, I am not going to respond,” he told JioCinema.

Clarifying his stand on the matter, he explained:

“[I am] not trying to be arrogant or rude, just want to stay away from that and focus on the game. This is a message to all my family members and friends, if you’re thinking about messaging me for tickets, please don’t.”

On a serious note, Rahul admitted that facing Australia is the best possible test ahead of the World Cup.

Responding to a query, he said:

“I think so, they’re coming into the World Cup as one of the favourites. They’ve got some great players, some we play IPL with and we can see the impact they have. They come to India a lot, they know our pitches and conditions as well as we do. This series will all be about how each team brings their skills to the forefront. So, yes, really excited about the series and this is the best way to challenge ourselves before the World Cup.”

Incidentally, India and Australia will meet again in their opening World Cup clash in Chennai on October 8.

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“Big difference between opening and batting in the middle order” - KL Rahul

At the start of his international career, Rahul was viewed as more of an opening option across formats. However, due to team requirements, he has been happy to shift to the middle order lately. The 31-year-old admitted that batting at different positions requires different skills.

“All my life, I have batted as an opener. At the top of the order, you are creating the game yourself. Even when you are chasing, you know you need to score a particular score. You go in with zero baggage. There is no pressure of falling wickets or required run rate. But when you bat in the middle order, you have the situation in front of you and then need to act accordingly. That’s the only major difference," Rahul elaborated.

“I have been lucky that I have got enough games in the middle order to understand and adapt. Batting at positions 4 and 5 are not too different but yes, there is a big difference between opening and batting in the middle order,” he concluded.

Rahul scored an unbeaten 58 off 63 in the Mohali ODI against Australia as India chased down 277 in 48.4 overs.