Former Australian cricketer Shane Watson has touted star opener KL Rahul to be the main man for India in T20Is in coming years, stating that the right-hander's prime is yet to come.
Rahul has only played three T20Is this year -- all in the Asia Cup -- and is searching for touch and form before the all-important ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2022 next month. The 30-year-old, who recently came back into India's T20I team after an injury layoff, has also come under criticism from some quarters for his slow starts.
"He's performed very well in international cricket for India in recent times. He's that good. The skill that he's got, he certainly can be the main man," Watson said in the latest episode of The ICC Review.
"And he's only 30 as well. He's still got three, four, five years at his absolute prime at the international level. Batters normally take until they are 27, 28 or even into their early 30s for their whole game to come together - technique, mental aspect as well. He's still got a lot of years in his prime.
"He can definitely take his game to that really high-performing, consistent level. That's the skill he's got," he added.
The 41-year old Watson went on to compare Rahul to former Australian stylist Damien Martyn, saying Rahul was one of his favourite players to watch.
"His skill, how effortlessly he takes on fast-bowling, spin, he's got all the shots in the book and he just times the ball so beautifully. When I look at him batting, it makes me think of Damien Martyn and the grace that he had when he played, how hard he hit the ball. It looks like he's not trying to hit the ball hard at all," the former all-rounder said.
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"In recent times, Suryakumar Yadav has certainly got that style as well. Babar Azam, you can't go past him. But when it comes to KL Rahul, he's certainly right up there with his ability to just be able to take on the best bowlers of the world with so much ease. It's not that easy," he concluded.