IND vs ENG: KL Rahul reflects on returning to Lucknow & India comeback

The injury that I had, kept me out of the game for 4-5 months. That was a tough time, it takes a lot of hard work, a lot of patience and you have to go through that which is not very easy, says Rahul

India wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul is back on a ground - Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow - that has given him life lessons and bittersweet memories. Ahead of the India vs England World Cup match, Rahul said that he wants to create new memories in his franchise ground in Lucknow. He also revealed how he worked on his mental strength to shut out the outside noise as he made a superb comeback in Colombo during the 2023 Asia Cup. 

In the press conference ahead of the India vs England match, he was asked about bitter memories at Ekana Stadium when he played for Lucknow Super Giants against Royal Challengers Bangalore in IPL 2023.

KL candidly said that he wants to forget that moment, but everybody is reminding him that again and again.

" am a little sad about that (leaving IPL 2023 mid-way), but the injury that I had, it kept me out of the game for 4-5 months. That was a tough time. Whoever has an injury, if you ask anyone - they undergo surgery and to come back, it takes a lot of hard work, a lot of patience and you have to go through that which is not very easy," 31-year-old Rahul said.

He also reflected on how he shut the outside noise from social media, that has been affecting him by consulting a specialist. 

"There are specialists, batting specialists, bowling specialists, there are specialist mental coaches that you can really use and work on if you feel that it will help. So, I tried a bit of everything."

KL Rahul talked in length about how his comeback century, saying he has became more thick-skinned.

"I tried to address outside noise for a long time, I thought it wouldn't affect me, but in the last year or so it started affecting me. And then I realized that I will have to work on it. And when I got time, outside of the game, I tried to work on that side - mentally you got to get a lot more stronger, a lot more thick-skinned. So yeah, so that really helped me being away from the game," Rahul concluded.