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Indian batter KL Rahul was given out after a controversial review from the Australian team in the first Test of the Border Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. The highly-anticipated and elite five-match series between India and Australia kicked off in the early hours of Friday, November 22 (IST) at the Optus Stadium in Perth. The crucial series started with Indian stand-in skipper Jasprit Bumrah winning the toss and inviting the rivals to bowl first. While the Indian team were hopeful for a favourable start, things unfolded contrary to their expectations.
India got off to a disastrous start and lost four crucial wickets in the form of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Devdutt Padikkal, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul. Rahul opened his innings with Jaiswal and was playing a decent knock, but a controversial decision put an end to his stay and he walked back for 26 runs off 74 balls. The Indian batter was given not out by the on-field umpire after Australia appealed for a catch behind dismissal. Upon review, the third umpire adjudged the batter to have nicked the ball after a spike on Ultra Edge despite him seeming to hit the pad.
KL Rahul left visibly distraught after given controversial dismissal
The umpire was forced to go with the inconclusive angle from behind the stumps to make a decision even though a front-on angle was requested. The Indian batter was left distraught after the decision was reversed and indicated that he didn’t edge the ball. Generally, if the evidence is not enough to make a conclusion, the decision made by the on-field umpire is withheld, but in this case, the third umpire overturned the decision despite the lack of evidence. Rahul gave India some stability and stood firm on the crease when his partners at the other end kept changing. He contributed 26 runs off 74 balls as India were at 47 for 4 at lunch.
KL Rahul crosses 3000 Test runs during BGT opener
The game saw KL Rahul crossing the milestone of 3000 Test runs during Day 1 of the Border Gavaskar Trophy opening Test. He reached the record in 54 matches averaging at 34 with a combination of eight hundreds and fifteen half-centuries. Notably, the game saw Rahul filling in for skipper Rohit Sharma while opening for the side with Yashasvi Jaiswal.
