Rahul Tripathi believes that being honest doesn’t mean much if you are not positive at the same time. The Pune city-based attacking batsman is a part of the India team for the two T20Is in Ireland scheduled later this month. India is scheduled to play 2 T20Is in Malahide, Dublin on June 26 and 28.
Rahul Tripathi’s wait for a call-up in the national side finally came to an end with BCCI declaring the 17-member squad for the upcoming T20Is against Ireland. The middle-order batter, who has been scoring constantly in the Indian Premier League, was finally rewarded for his stellar show in the lucrative T20 competition.
Rahul Tripathi: One Needs To Have The Right Balance Between Thinking And Execution
Batting at a strike rate of 158.33, the right-handed batter Rahul Tripathi had accumulated 413 runs from 14 matches in this edition of the IPL 2022 for Sunrisers Hyderabad. He had scored 397 in 17 matches in 2021 and was a key player for his former franchise Kolkata Knight Riders.
“At times you can be honest but still not positive. I also believe that one needs to have the right balance between thinking and execution. Just thinking without working on it or just working without thinking may not give the desired results.”
“When you get your first break, it comes this way only.”
Rahul Tripathi is aware that he is included in the Ireland party since India is not fielding a full-strength team.
Rahul Tripathi Reckons Being In The Indian Team A Dream Come True Moment
Steve Smith was the first to see the spark in Rahul Tripathi and promoted him to the top order at now-defunct Rising Pune Supergiant(s) in 2017. The subsequent team management experimented with his batting slots and that dented his consistency.
“Hrishikesh Kanitkar gave me some important tips,” said Tripathi. “But being associated with Abhishek Nayar (former Mumbai all-rounder) at KKR really rejuvenated me. His contribution is big in my progress. Now, I am more comfortable about adapting my game according to the team’s requirements. I am confident about expressing myself in the non-powerplay overs too.”“I believe in keeping the scoreboard moving all the time and keep improving my game. I believe in hard work. Being busy also gives me happiness hence I go for a trek or play football when cricket-related activities are less.”
Rahul Tripathi is grateful for the financial rewards from the IPL.
“But more than that it’s about the opportunity to play cricket with and against international stars. The platform it provides is amazing,” he said. “As I started doing well in the IPL, I could sense I was in the India reckoning. Being in the team now is a dream come true.”
Rahul Tripathi over the years has been making waves with his hard-hitting skills. In his debut season in 2017 with Rising Pune Supergiant, he pummelled the bowlers to make his presence felt in the IPL. He slammed a highest of 93 as he gathered 391 runs from 12 matches.
He played for the Rajasthan Royals in 2018 and 2019 but did not have the best of seasons. He was traded in the KKR line-up after being brought in the 2020 IPL Auction for INR 60 lakhs. Since then he has been KKR’s go-to man in the top-order scoring 397 runs in the 2021 IPL season.