India vs West Indies: KL Rahul carries overseas form onto home turf as 11th ton shows how consistency is his new middle name

If the England tour saw Rahul put consistency as his middle name, Friday was when he got another monkey off his back. He has challenging, match-winning, grinding and counter-attacking centuries to his name on recent England and South Africa tours, but came into the Test series against the West Indies having gone 26 innings over nine years without a century at home.

After the England series, where he made over 500 runs, the Karnataka batsman needed to show he has made scoring centuries a habit. The 100 off 197 deliveries is precisely what Rahul and India would have wanted.

India’s KL Rahul celebrates after scoring a century on the second day of the first Test cricket match between India and West Indies at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, India, Friday, Oct. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

“Really enjoying my batting, playing in different conditions. England was fun. Obviously, getting runs there gives you a lot of confidence. Coming into this game with some runs behind me also helped. Feeling fresher after a longish break after the series,” Rahul told the host broadcaster.

Resuming on 53 on Day 2, he offered a chance in the first over of the day. Having already steered a boundary through the vacant cordon off Jayden Seales, Rahul hung his bat out to a full delivery, like he did in England on a couple of occasions that proved to be his undoing. But West Indies – rather than keeping the cordon tight so early in the day – had left a considerable gap between wicketkeeper Shai Hope and Alick Athanaze at first slip, and the ball bisected the two. The cordon came closer soon after, but it was also a reminder that Rahul needed to tighten up his game.

While all of India’s eyes have been on new Test captain Shubman Gill, Rahul 2.0 hasn’t been far behind. Despite the talent at his disposal, the major chink in Rahul’s batting had been his somewhat porous defence. The corridor of uncertainty has been his death trap in the past, where when caught in two minds, he invariably puts his bat outside the line of the stumps to find a nick.

As evident in the first over of the day, the chink hasn’t completely disappeared, but manifests itself less frequently these days. And in the time that India’s batting line-up has undergone a transition, it has also provided Rahul clarity on his role.

There was a phase when India’s think-tank explored the idea of having him in the middle order. But, post the Australia tour, when it was made clear that he would bat at the top, Rahul has seldom looked back, repaying the faith reposed in him by head coach Gautam Gambhir.

Making form count

The characteristic feature of his game as an opener these days is how late he plays the ball, irrespective of whether it is deviating or not. And once he settles in, he often ensures that the start is converted into a big one. Having got a considerable break post the England series, a period he mostly spent at home with his new-born, Rahul turned up for India A’s four-day fixture against Australia A last week in Lucknow. After making 11 in the first innings, his unbeaten 176 in the fourth innings helped India A chase down 412 for victory.

So runs were expected from Rahul when he landed in Ahmedabad. The West Indies attack might not be as challenging as the other ones he has faced in recent times, the most difficult task for a batsman in such form is to make it count even when conditions and the opposition doesn’t get the best out of him.

India’s captain Shubman Gill, left, and KL Rahul walks off the field after the end of play of the first day of the first Test cricket match between India and West Indies at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, India, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)

Greater responsibilities often provide the most boring tasks. Having seen two young batsmen – Yashasvi Jaiswal and B Sai Sudharsan – throwing away their wickets – Rahul showed how to get the job done, and make each opportunity count.

With the West Indies operating with a spread-out field, he had just 12 boundaries to show as he ran 44 singles and 4 doubles.

“The only thing that I’ve worked on in the last year or so has been maintaining my batting tempo. Just enjoying the phases that are not as exciting. For me, in my own head, obviously when you travel abroad and play in seaming, swinging conditions with extra bounce, there’s a lot of challenge doing that,” Rahul reflected.

“And when we come back home, when there’s three spinners playing and the field’s spread out, you really need to dig in and get your runs in singles. The boundaries don’t come that easily. So yeah, that’s something that I’ve worked on. I needed to make that mental switch to enjoy doing that, enjoy grinding and getting 100s with singles and twos as well.”