KL Rahul accomplishes multiple feats with 55 in Edgbaston Test
What's the story
The in-form KL Rahul has achieved yet another milestone in Test cricket. The stylish right-handed opener brought up his fifth 50-plus Test score as an opener in England during the third innings of the second game at Edgbaston. With this, he has surpassed legendary Indian batsman Vijay Merchant, who had four such scores to his name. Rahul, who departed for 55, also completed 3,000 Test runs as an opener. Here we decode his stats.
Knock
A fine hand from Rahul
With nearly an hour's play left on Day 3, Rahul opened for India alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal. The former played with intent and returned unbeaten on 28. He continued the good work on Day 4 morning and brought up a fine half-century. Notably, he added 51 runs with Jaiswal before further stitching 45 runs with Karun Nair. Pacer Josh Tongue eventually trapped him for 55. This knock came after England posted 407/10 while responding to India's first-innings total of 587/10.
Performance
Rahul only behind Gavaskar
Rahul, who smoked a hundred in the series opener, has been phenomenal in English conditions. As per ESPNcricinfo, he has three Test centuries to his name in the nation, the most for any Indian opener. Playing his 10th Test as an opener in England, Rahul has raced to 833 runs at 41.65 (50s: 2). Sunil Gavaskar (1,152) is the only Indian with more Test runs in the UK as a designated opener.
Rankings
Indian openers with most 50-plus scores in England
In the list of the most 50-plus scores as an opener for India in England, Rahul now stands second with five such scores. He is behind only Gavaskar, who has 10 such scores, including two centuries. As mentioned, Rahul broke the tie with Merchant, who had four 50-plus scores. Overall, Rahul has raced to 850 Test runs in England at 38.63.
Stats
3,000 runs as opener in Tests
Speaking of his overall numbers while opening in Tests, Rahul has raced to 3,039 runs at an average of 36.17. The tally includes eight centuries and 15 fifties across 50 Tests. His highest score is 199 against England in Chennai, back in December 2016. Only Gavaskar (9,607), Virender Sehwag (8,124), Gautam Gambhir (4,119), and Murali Vijay (3,880) boast more Test runs while opening for India.
Numbers
Rahul averages over 40 against England
Rahul's 55 off 84 balls in the third innings was laced with 10 fours. Playing his 15th Test against England, Rahul has raced to 1,191 runs as he averages 42.53. The veteran has so far tallied four tons and three fifties against England. Meanwhile, Rahul has overall raced to 3,493 runs at an average of 34.58 from 60 Test matches (100s: 8, 50s: 18).