Although both of them had competed for the same opening spot in the Indian Test team, Mayank Agarwal and KL Rahul have remained the best of friends. If anything, both have lauded the achievements of each other regularly.
The two Karanatake boys, Agarwal and Rahul, have been close friends for a long time, and have shared their ups and downs on and off the field with each other.
Agarwal made his India debut in 2019 and both have played 11 international games, recently opening together in South Africa when Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill were injured. In fact, it was a concussion injury to Agarwal that gave way for Rahul’s return in Test eleven last year in England and he grabbed the opportunities with both hands, with Agarwal now taken as the back-up opener.
Speaking on the show Backstage with Boria about his bond with KL Rahul, Agarwal said, “We share a great bond as friends. He’s seen my journey and vice-versa. It’s been really nice that we’ve had that kind of friendship, even though somewhere down the line, we probably competed for the same spot. But I think the mindset has always been to help each other. To grow.”
Both were reunited in the IPL at Punjab Kings (then Kings XI Punjab) in 2018 and carried the batting order. Two years later, Rahul was named the captain and led the side in the 2020 and 2021 seasons, but couldn’t reach the playoffs before he moved out of Punjab and joined Lucknow Super Giants this year. Agarwal was retained and now has been appointed the new skipper of the side.
Mayank Agarwal gave his views on Rahul’s temperament as a player and captain.
“In terms to KL Rahul, he’s been a very calm and composed character. He’s somebody, who’s definitely going to give you suggestion. He reads and understands the situation very well,” the 31-year-old added.
While Agarwal is yet to make his T20I debut, he has been in terrific form in the IPL, scoring 424 runs (strike rate 156.45) and 441 runs (strike rate 140.44) in the 2020 and 2021 seasons respectively.
