Another Rahul makes it to Team India

Karnataka’s K L Rahul was rewarded for his consistency in the domestic circuit with a berth in the Indian Test squad for the series against Australia starting next month.

The 19-man squad announced on Monday also featured 27-year-old Uttar Pradesh leg-spinner Karn Sharma and 31-year-old Madhya Pradesh wicketkeeper-batsman Naman Ojha.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who will also sit out of the last two one-dayers against Sri Lanka, was named skipper of the side, but the Jharkhand man will miss the first Test at Brisbane, starting on December 4, due to a forearm injury. Virat Kohli will lead the team at the Gabba.

Suresh Raina, rather surprisingly, made a return to the Test fold. But there was no ambiguity over Rahul’s selection. He was the second-highest run-getter in Ranji Trophy last season, with 1,035 runs, and he cemented his claims with twin hundreds in the Duleep Trophy final against Central Zone at New Delhi a fortnight ago.

“It hasn’t really sunk in. My name was doing rounds and I was eager for the selections to be over. I have always dreamt of being a part of the Indian team. It became a reality today. This is a big opportunity, and I want to make my country proud,” Rahul, who is in Hyderabad for the South Zone one-dayers for the Subbiah Pillai Trophy, told Deccan Herald.  The 22-year-old right-handed opener said the back-to-back hundreds in the Duleep Trophy final have enhanced his confidence.

“The centuries have given me a lot of confidence. I feel all the hard work of the past couple of seasons has paid off, and I’m happy with the way I’m batting,” he said. Rahul, whose name was strongly suggested as back-up opener by former Indian skipper Rahul Dravid recently, had toured Australia with India ‘A’ in July, and he hoped the experience would stand him in good stead.

“The pitches were slower than expected when we went to Australia. So I can’t really say I’m feeling confident or that I’m used to the conditions. The bounce and the pace of the wicket will vary. I’ll work on a few things in my batting. I would like to work on my reaction time. I want to face short-pitched balls from 18 or 20 yards to quicken my reaction time against pace bowling,” he added.