KL Rahul asserted he would not be overawed by Test captaincy if given the job.
Team India will have a new leader after Virat Kohli stepped down as skipper following the 1-2 series loss to South Africa last week. Speaking at a virtual news conference on Tuesday, Rahul said: “To lead the country is a dream come true for any player and something special that he will cherish for a long time. I too am no different.
“It’ll be exciting, though I’m not really looking for anything at this point in time. But if I’m given the opportunity, I’ll try my best to carry Team India and Indian cricket forward to the best of my abilities.”
Rahul added: “I had the opportunity to lead the Test team in Johannesburg and it was something really, really special. The result wasn’t as per expectations, but it was a great learning experience which I’ll always be proud of.”
Leading Punjab Kings in the IPL too hasn’t been a great experience for Rahul. He did well as a batsman, but Punjab failed to make the play-offs in the last two editions. Rahul’s tone was sarcastic when he said the unimpressive captaincy record for Punjab gives him “a lot of confidence. However, he believes he will get better at the job.
“I played under great captains, MS (Mahendra Singh) Dhoni and Virat, and I can use that (experience) when I captain in more games for my country. “I’m human and I’ll make mistakes, but I’ll also get better at the job,” the 29-year-old said.
Elaborating on what he has learnt regarding Test captaincy from Kohli, Rahul stated: “The current winning belief, which is there in the team, is largely because of Virat’s leadership.
“He has made us believe in ourselves, and believe that we can go outside India and beat any team.”