India vs Australia: Working towards improving myself as an opening batter, says KL Rahul

India vice-captain KL Rahul addressed concerns around his form and strike rate in the T20Is during a press conference ahead of the series opener against Australia in Mohali.

India vice-captain KL Rahul said he has been working towards improving as an opening batter and making more impact on the team in the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2022. Rahul's poor form with the bat has come under the scanner after the Indian vice-captain managed to score only 132 runs in the five Asia Cup 2022 matches.

Also, Rahul opened up on the criticism of his strike rate during the T20Is, saying no one is perfect and it is something he is working hard to improve while opening the innings for India. Notably, KL Rahul has an average strike rate of 140.91 in the 61 T20Is.

"Look, obviously something that every player wants to work on. No one is perfect, everybody is working towards something, obviously strike rates are taken on an overall basis. You never see when a batter has played at a certain strike rate, whether it was important to play for him to play at a 200 strike rate or whether the team could still have won with him playing at 120-130. These are the things that no one analyses," KL Rahul told reporters on the eve of the series opener against Australia.

"Yes, it is something that I am working at, the roles that have been defined for each player in the last 10-12 months have been very clear, and everyone is working towards it. And, I am just working towards how I can better myself as an opening batter and how I can have an impact on my team whenever I go out to bat," he added.

Rahul further pointed out that coach Rahul Dravid and captain Rohit Sharma have created a secure environment where players are not scared to commit mistakes or fail.

"There can be criticism about many things. But the most important thing for a player is what his captain, coach, and teammates think of him in the dressing room. Only we know what role is expected of each player. Everyone is trying to give their best, but not everyone can succeed in each game. It is the kind of environment we have created where players are not scared to commit mistakes or fail," Rahul added.