India vs AUS 2019, T20I: 3 major takeaways from the series

The return to form of KL Rahul the batsman was pleasing to the eyes

KL Rahul

KL Rahul has had a torrid past 12-15 months. His form has plummetted in the test matches and ODIs, with many questioning the selector's persistence in picking him despite his poor performances.

KL Rahul as a batsman, has all the shots in the book, and technically he is very solid and compact. But in the past few series in England and Australia, a string of low scores has impacted his self-confidence and has not allowed him to play to his full potential.

Another factor that contributed to his diminishing returns was the episode on the chat show Koffee With Karan that led him and Hardik Pandya getting banned for a few games. That would surely have seriously dented his confidence and morale even more.

So to get away from all the controversies and get back into some rhythm, he played in a couple of games for India A against England Lions. Under the tutorship of Rahul Dravid, KL Rahul flourished there. He spent a considerable amount of time in the middle which improved his confidence.

KL Rahul returned to playing in a format that has suited him the most so far for India - T20. Right from the word go, one could see more intent, controlled aggression from the stylish batsman. He seemed to be in a far better space mentally in the two T20Is.

Although he certainly would rue the fact that a 100 was on the cards, but missed, on both occasions. His knock was clearly a class apart in a low scoring thriller at Vizag, as after his dismissal, runs were hard to come by for both sides.

One would hope that this is the start of a good run of form for Rahul. He should ensure that he takes all possible chances offered to him prior to the World Cup, so that he can stake a claim to make it to the World Cup squad.