NZ vs IND: KL Rahul gives his honest opinion on becoming Team India's first-choice wicketkeeper

Team India cricketer KL Rahul played a scintillating knock of 56 runs off 27 deliveries during India's 6-wicket win over New Zealand in Auckland on Friday (January 24).

Speaking at the post-match press conference, Rahul expressed his delight of playing the dual role of a wicketkeeper-batsman for the national side.

"I am honestly loving it, in the international stage it might look that I am new to wicket-keeping, but I have done this role in the domestic cricket. I have done it for my IPL franchise, I enjoy staying behind the stumps," Rahul told reporters after the first T20I.

"It gives me a great idea of how the pitch is playing then I can pass on the message to the skipper and bowlers. Wicket-keeping requires you to be pro-active. I am enjoying the responsibility," he added.

The Karnataka batsman also said that he was a bit frustrated in the past when he missed out on matches for India but is now happy to concrete his spot in the starting 11.

"I felt like I was not getting enough game time, I was a part of the team for a long time, but I used to get just a couple of games," KL said.

"As a batsman, you need some time in the middle. I got runs in domestic cricket and that has worked really well for me," he added.

Rishabh Pant recently lost his spot as India's first-choice wicketkeeper in white-ball cricket to KL, who has been performing exceptionally on the pitch for the past few months now.

The left-handed batsman picked up a concussion during India's first ODI clash against Australia and was ruled out for the final two matches of the series.

Due to his injury, KL took on the wicketkeeping job for the 'Men In Blue' and performed brilliantly to help his side secure the three-match ODI series against the Aussies 2-1.

With a 1-0 lead in the bag, Team India is set to take on New Zealand again in game number two of the five-match T20I series on Sunday (January 26) at Eden Park.