KL Rahul's return to form has given India's ODI World Cup title bid a huge boost. The wicket-keeper batter did very well for the team as he made his return in the Asia Cup 2023 Super 4 stage. There, however, still remain some who are concerned about the wicket-keeper batter's fitness, considering he hasn't played many matches in the past 6 months. When asked about the question marks on his fitness, Rahul said that the 'question' has already been answered.
Leading the Indian team in the absence of Rohit Sharma, Rahul did well as the team defeated Australia in the first ODI. Speaking of the leadership role, the Karnataka batter said: "The team management has shown a lot of faith in me in the last two years. They keep giving me more responsibilities which shows that they believe and trust in my abilities. It gives me a lot of confidence and I also enjoy taking responsibility. It makes life and playing cricket a lot more fun."
There were some who cast doubt on Rahul's ability to hit the ground running in the Asia Cup as it has been a while since he had played professional cricket. But, he didn't just score runs but also kept wickets for long intervals, giving a fine example of his fitness.
"Everyone has seen me playing in the Asia Cup, I played all the games in the Super Fours. I kept behind the wickets, batted and scored runs as well, so I think that question is answered for everyone who were concerned about my fitness. Hopefully, I'll carry on in the same way with a big two months coming up with the World Cup and the Australia series," he told Jio Cinema.
"When asked about his physical preparation for a cricket match, the stand-in India skipper said, "I knew when I would return to the side, I'd have to keep wickets and bat... The physical challenges are a lot more compared to when I am only batting. I knew this, so I worked very hard on my fitness. As cricketers, we know the challenges that we will have to face on the field and we try to replicate that at training and practice sessions," he further said.
Upon his return, Rahul scored a century against Pakistan and stayed not out on 58 runs off 63 against Australia in the first ODI.