- By Aalok Sensharma
- Sat, 07 Dec 2019 05:01 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Hyderabad | Jagran Sports Desk: Handed a chance to open the innings for India in the absence of Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul on Friday played a handy innings of 62 to help India win the first T20I against the Windies. After the match, the attacking right-hander batsman said that he is looking to make the most of the opportunities but doesn't want to worry about sealing his T20 World Cup berth.
"It's (T20 Wolrd Cup) a long way honestly. I have got the opportunity to bat top of the order again after a couple of series, so looking forward to just making the best use of it," Rahul said at the post match press conference.
"Today was a good outing, good hit in the middle and hopefully I can continue the same thing without worrying about October next year. There are a lot of games before that," he said.
The 27-year-old also said that the wicket at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium wasn't the easiest wicket to bat. "The wicket wasn't bad, both teams scored 200 plus and we chased it in 19 overs but it wasn't the easiest wicket to bat on," Rahul said.
Speaking about his partnership with Kohli, Rahul said that there was plan was simple and stay patient.
"When you are chasing 200 plus obviously you want to come out hard so sometimes you don't hold your shape," Rahul said.
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"So in the middle 2-3 overs we obviously got it harder to get the boundaries but we knew that once we get a few boundaries it will start, so we just had to stay patient. We just kept the intent going. Our plans were very clear that you have to hit boundaries while chasing 200 runs," he said.
"It obviously was a bit tricky but the best chance for a batsman to score runs was once you are set. Fortunately Virat carried on and finished the game for us," Rahul added.
India on Friday won the first T20I against the Windies by six-wickets. The second T20 International of the series will now be played in Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday.
(With PTI inputs)