'I remember I had a conversation with Rohit, and he said that one of the things he was really keen on me doing was working with K L and bringing out a more aggressive outlook.'
Former India assistant coach Abhishek Nayar revealed how ODI captain Rohit Sharma entrusted him with mentoring K L Rahul to adopt a more aggressive approach and unleash his full potential across formats.
Rahul has flummoxed everyone with his technical prowess and impressive artillery during his century in the first against England at Headingley. In the second innings, the opener dazzled with a composed 137 from 247 deliveries -- a masterclass in batting.
Nayar, who served as India's assistant coach in April, reminisced about the time when Rohit asked him to work with Rahul, as the former captain had a strong belief in the 33-year-old's capability to play a significant role for India across formats.
"When I first picked up that role, I remember I had a conversation with Rohit, and he said that one of the things he was really keen on me doing was working with K L and bringing out a more aggressive outlook to how K L played the game, and bringing the best out of him. Because he believed strongly that K L would play a major role in the Champions Trophy, World Cup and everything going forward, including the BGT (Border-Gavaskar Trophy) and the Tests in England," Nayar told ESPNCricinfo.
Rahul was the crossroads of his career after failing in the first Test against New Zealand in Bengaluru in October last year while batting at No 6 with scores of 0 and 12 before he lost his place for the next two Tests.
Nayar stated how the Border-Gavaskar Trophy was a crucial series for Rahul -- as he needed runs to keep his place in the the Indian Test team.
"I think that was sort of the inception (of our relationship). Australia was going to be critical for him because it was almost like, what if you didn't get runs there, then where is his career going? Because he was out of the T20 (squad). Then this could also very well have been his last series," Nayar said.
"I told him, listen, we have got 15 days to prepare before we go to Australia, and take those 10 days there, we have got almost month to prepare -- What do you want to do? How do you want to approach this? What is your mindset?"
"He spoke about what he's been doing and what worked for him in the past. And then I had a certain thought process, which was very different from his. Over hours and hours of conversation and trying to make him understand where I came from, eventually, I got him to a place where he sort of trusted me to do certain things with him in regards to how he practises, in regards to trusting certain changes in his tactics, in regards to his stance, where he stands in the crease, what guard he takes," he added.
Nayar didn't give out the secret tweaks he made to Rahul's batting, who has helped him rediscover his form.
"All I can tell you is, the way I've always tried to handle things is to first try and address the skill, and then use skill as a medium to address the mind. That's as much as I can tell you in terms of details."
"It's about using practice to give his mind reassurance with the plan that we have, and what he needs to do to execute it. And then adding a lot of tactical nuances to that so that it gives him a slight edge when he's batting. So his focus is totally on following and executing those tactical adjustments and nuances rather than focusing on the result of it."
© 2025