KL Rahul sledging England without uttering a single word almost goes unnoticed
In the viral clip, Rahul unleashed a silent sledge at England batter Gus Atkinson during a tense phase of the match, as the hosts battled the odds with an injured Chris Woakes walking in to bat one-handed, his right arm in a sling.
Woakes had dislocated his shoulder while fielding in the first innings and was ruled out for the rest of the Test. But with England collapsing under India's fiery pace attack in their chase of 374, he braved the pain to walk out on the final morning and give Atkinson company in one last bid to pull off the miracle.
With Woakes relegated to a non-striker's role, he hobbled between the wickets for four singles, ensuring Atkinson remained on strike during their 13-ball, 10-run partnership. After one of Atkinson's defensive shots rolled towards Rahul at slip, the India star let his boots do the talking — flicking the ball up with his foot and juggling it with casual flair, as if mocking the moment.
The Oval crowd's roaring reaction to Rahul's football-style sledge can't be missed in the clip.
Rahul capped off a fabulous outing in England. He scored 532 runs in 10 innings, the third-most by a batter in the series, and the second most by an Indian, after Shubman Gill, who amassed 754 runs. Rahul's tally comprised a century in Leeds and then at Lord's, along with fifties in Birmingham and Manchester.
Following the win at The Oval, India moved to the third spot in the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) points table. Overall, they have two wins, two losses and a draw - all from the tour of England - thus far in the new WTC cycle. The win in London also saw India usurp England to take the third spot as they now have 28 points on the board and a points percentage of 46.67 per cent, as per ICC. On the other hand, England sit in the fourth spot, with 26 points, despite having similar wins and draws as India. Their position was impacted by a two-point deduction for a slow over rate during the Lord's Test.
Australia remain at the top of the table, having won all three matches this cycle.
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