• Source:JND
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IND vs ENG 5th Test: Ex-India head coach Abhishek Nayar has reckoned that India's star batter KL Rahul used to spend every single minute to prepare for the ongoing series post the IPL, and thus gave credit to his grit and determination for his sublime form during the ongoing series. Rahil, who had scored 532 runs at a staggering average of 53.20, which included two hundreds and as many half-centuries, and had also become the side's second-highest run-scorer.

He played important roles while batting at different positions and stitched brilliant partnerships with fellow opener Yashasvi Jaiswal.

"There are very, very few people who know this - after the birth of his child, he was in the IPL and came back immediately to start preparing for the England Test series. While a lot of people wouldn't have done that, he knew the importance of this series. He understood it, "Nayar was quoted as saying to PTI.

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"Every minute post the last IPL game he played was about how he can do well in this Test series. So it's great to see him succeed and get the recognition he rightly deserves - being the guy who's done all the dirty jobs and still managed to perform at every number in that batting order," he added.

Nayar, who has observed Rahul closely when he was the coach of the Indian team, said that although he can't reveal much specific information about the changes he had made, his results spoke a lot.

"I can't talk about the changes I've seen in KL Rahul because then it's out there, and the effectiveness goes down a lot. All I can say is, whatever the changes are, they have worked. Sometimes - and I always say this - in a cricketer's journey and a team's journey, things need to click. You need a bit of the rub of the green. I think he's had that as well," he added.

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He also heaped praises on the Shubman Gill-led side for the way they bounced back during the fourth Test match.

"A lot of the changes that you've seen in our players getting runs are partly down to conditions, but also due to the hunger they've shown to go out there and prove a point. The determination in the last game, the fight they showed - it just tells you about the mentality our players carry, and the feeling they have for Test cricket", he concluded.

Talking about almost the last day of the series, he said, "All in all, Indian cricket is in good hands and hopefully we wrap it up today and everything's good."