The case of KL Rahul in Tests

It's unfair to talk about someone when they are not doing well. Therefore the intention of this blog is not rant on KL Rahul or his performances of late but to lend some statistical evidence as to why ordinary cricket fans like me are pining for a change at the top of India's batting order. I will also urge my readers to look up Jarrod Kimber's video which presents a very interesting take on KL Rahul's performances.

In order to help my analysis, I visited Cricinfo to garner some vital stats about Rahul's career. I looked at his overall numbers and came up with a scatter plot of his batting performances in tests.

Rahul's test career average from 2014-2023

Scatter Plot of KL Rahul's test performances from 2014-2023

When I analyzed Rahul's entire test career, 64% of his innings yielded less than 30 runs. 86% of these innings produced 20 runs or less.

Rahul's test scores' breakdown

When I confined my examination to his 3rd and 4th innings' scores, the occurrence of a low score increased to more than 70% and his average in these innings dropped to 23. If I remove his 4th innings rearguard of 149 from The Oval in 2018 as an outlier, then his average peters out to 19 with only three 50+ scores in the penultimate and final innings of test matches.

Rahul's 3rd and 4th innings' scores' breakdown

I also looked at the median score from his 81 test innings and that came out to be only 16 which means that 50% of his test scores have come for 16 runs or less. This is exactly the reason why Rahul doesn't inspire confidence in the Indian cricket fan who has consistently been let down in big match conditions in the past few years.

There's no denying the fact that the team management sees tremendous potential in Rahul but there's also no way around these simple stats I presented above. These numbers don't augur well for someone who has been groomed for sometime as this nation's talisman. It's time that India won an ICC trophy, we need someone whom we can solidly rely upon rather than rely on talent who look the part. Maybe, Rahul can still turn all of this around and win one for the home team. Until that happens, a change of guard at the top looks to be the natural step forward.

What are your thoughts? Whom do you think should take over from Rahul? Leave a comment!

Until Next Time,

Your Cricket Fan,

Chaitanya J.J.

Comments

Zamarrud Theatre Hyderabad

More than two decades ago a 5 year old boy (yours truly) found himself in Abids which was certainly then the microcosm of Hyderabad. Abids in the 80s <Courtesy: OkaTeluguAbbayi > The occasion was a family outing to Zamarrud Cinema. And we are stepping out for not just any movie my friends, my parents decided that nothing less than the Raj Kapoor blockbuster Chori Chori was good enough for us. To be honest I wasn't exactly enthused about watching a black and white film of a bygone era even though the movie had all the credentials of a classic. But that was before I saw Zamarrud, the theatre where the movie was being played. Nested in the heart of Abids, Zamarrud was the perfect amalgamation of Hyderabad's old world charm and new fangled ways. Zamarrud was not just any theatre, it was one of the first air conditioned halls in Hyderabad, a premiere cinema hall which used to host the best of what the film industry had to offer and the place to go for Hyderabad...

Three things which didn't work for me in Vishwanath & Sons

Plot Summary When a single father in his forties learns that his baby needs a bone marrow transplant, he reaches out to the child’s 20-year-old surrogate mother for help. What begins as a practical arrangement soon becomes an emotional journey that forces two people from different generations to confront their age difference, deeply ingrained ways of life, and growing connection. Suriya and Mamitha Baiju in Vishwanath & Sons Three things which didn't work for me Although I felt that the film handled the age difference between its leads in a largely progressive manner, there were a few elements that felt unnecessary or repetitive. Here are the things that didn’t quite work for me in Vishwanath & Sons . The whole Olympic shooting angle: The film opens with Sanjay Vishwanath ( Suriya ) winning a gold medal in shooting for India at the 2024 Paris Olympics. We are also told that this triumph comes after multiple failed attempts at previous editions of the Games. But apart from ...

Black Eagle (1988)

I have a soft corner in my heart for the action films of the eighties . I am also a huge fan of movies where stars are cast against type ( see Vera Cruz ). So, when I got a chance to watch 1988's Black Eagle pitting international action star Jean-Claude Van Damme as the 'villain' against acclaimed martial arts guru Sho Kosugi , I just couldn't let it pass by. Black Eagle 1988 Plot When a US F-111 jet carrying a laser tracking device goes missing in the Mediterranean, agent Ken Tani (Sho Kosugi) code-named ' Black Eagle ' is summoned to retrieve the device before the Soviet KGB acquires it. Ken unwillingly lands in Malta and is immediately targeted by Soviet Agent Andrei (Jean-Claude Van Damme). Will Ken acquire the tracking device? Who wins? (Guess that answer is obvious!) The Cliches Cliches are the life and soul of action movies. When you have a martial arts movie in the spy genre those cliches only double. So here are all the noteworthy cli...

10 Random Things about the First IPL

It's IPL time, the time of the year where cricket turns from a gentleman's game into a three ringed circus for the stars, the people and the players. It's hard to believe that it's been 10 long years since the IPL started but I just seem to remember it like yesterday. As soon I thought about the first IPL I remembered some tight finishes, some great performances, raw emotion, glamour that was on display and some utterly forgettable moments. So here are 10 random things I remember about the first IPL: Teams of the first IPL <Courtesy: Reddit > Akshay Kumar , the brand ambassador (Oh! the brand ambassadors was one way franchises burnt their hard earned money during the first IPL) for Delhi Daredevils (DD) zip-lined his way into the ground for an IPL match. DD followed his example of daredevilry all throughout the league phase before their stunt went all wrong crashing them into the ground in the semis . Ricky Ponting (yes he p...

Parmanu: The Story of Pokhran

Backdrop: I diligently avoid docudramas based on real incidents as they only rehash what we already know without adding anything new. That's precisely the reason why I avoided watching Parmanu all these weeks but it's been a while since I saw a movie and the lack of decent fair at the cinemas coupled with upbeat critical reviews for Parmanu finally cajoled me into watching it. Boy! Was I thrilled to watch a competent movie which was slick and gripping till the very end. The verdict is out first but keep reading as to what makes this movie a recommended watch . (Credits: IndiaToday.in ) Plot: It's 1995 and India is facing an existential crisis amidst mounting defensive and strategic pressures from it's neighboring countries. I.A.S. officer, Ashwat Raina ( John Abraham ), believes that India's road to political parity lies in establishing a nuclear program. The recommendation is taken up but Ashwat Raina's plan is not followed to the ' T', resu...

Life Etc Etc

Search This Blog