#INDvAUS 4th Test: Right intent, horrible execution

For India opener KL Rahul, the hostile spell of Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins that he faced on the morning of Day 2 was the toughest that he has faced in his short 17-Test career.

This despite scoring his fifth half-century, and fourth on the trot – of the ongoing four-Test series against Australia. Though Rahul was India's top scorer with a hard-working 60 off 124 balls, him throwing it away with a rash shot was something that he has never been associated with before the start of this series.

He had four hundreds and one fifty to his name before this and that gave him the tag of India's opening find. But his consistency was somehow lost during this series and Sunday was no different when he thought of taking on hostile Cummins after reaching his fifty.

"Horrible execution, for sure," was how he termed his attempted pull shot with which he lost his wicket. "But having batted out there in the middle for a long time, I thought I could have taken him on as there were no fielders at the back. Like I said, horrible execution but my intent was right. But I can always sit here and question intent and a hundred things. But then in the middle, I thought I could take him on but unfortunate it didn't go my way," explained Rahul whose highest in the series so far is 90 in Bengaluru.

"Quite honestly, I'm not regretting anything. Obviously, am a little disappointed that I have not been able to convert the starts and get big runs for the team. On a personal note, this has not been a worst series for me. Got starts, batted really well, enjoyed batting in the middle. But, the Aussie bowlers haven't made it easy," he went on to say.

Rahul simply can't be blamed for India's batting woes in Dharamshala after Day Two. He has been India's most consistent batter in the series and till the time he was there in the middle, the hosts had nothing to worry despite some nasty bowling by two big Aussies.

"Cummins was fast, he was accurate. This wicket is obviously helping them with good bounce. With conditions here nice and cool, the Aussie pacers could bowl longer spells without getting tired," added Rahul.

But then Rahul can't blame anyone else for his rash shot here. He was patient, he was leaving rising deliveries. But then all of a sudden he decided to give it back to Cummins after some sledging on the field. He tried hitting Cummins out of the ground, but only ended up offering a dolly at mid-off.

On missing his regular skipper Virat Kohli for the first time since making his debut in Melbourne in December 2014, Rahul said: "We are missing Virat Kohli. Somebody like that, we've all played under him and he's been a huge influence on everybody in the team. He always sets great examples for us and he leads from the front. His aggression and energy are obviously something that would have been really good for us. But we need to learn to put our hands up and take the pressure and the responsibility sometimes. This game is a good opportunity for the rest of the guys to stand up and be counted."

Rahul knows that 2017 is far different from what he had till now in his short career. Though, the memories of his gritty century in Sydney in 2015 has not faded from memories but then he needs to talk more to himself. He has the technique to back him up. He has the temperament to hold him long. And more than anything, he has the determination to learn from his past mistakes.

"Hopefully, in the second innings, I can get him (Cummins) away. So I will go out with a positive intent in the second innings again," a resolute answer followed.

DID YOU KNOW?

Rahul is the third Indian batsman after Dilip Sardesai (vs England in 1963-64) and GR Viswanath (vs Australia in 1977-78) to register five fifties without posting a century in the series