Rahul's career-best 158 arms India with strong lead
Flawless innings are fairly rare in Test cricket. After all, the bowler gets to dictate some of the terms too. KL Rahul listened to them patiently, respected them when they made good points but did not cede his upper hand. His career-best 158 thrust India into the lead.
At the other end was Cheteshwar Pujara, who spent a full hour running away from making runs. He was 18 off 57 overnight and stayed on 18 until he faced his 92nd ball of the match. Much was made of his run-out after lunch. Facing 159 balls and being dismissed in that fashion evokes critique but there were mitigating circumstances.
Runs and records awaited anyone willing to show a little application on this Sabina Park pitch. But like a grandparent doting on their favourite grandkid in the middle of a party, it did embarrass them on the odd occasion. Notably, when Pujara nudged a short delivery from Jason Holder into the leg side. He meant for it to go a lot finer, but the ball had come onto the bat slower than expected and went off it in the same way, allowing Roston Chase, who was in front of square, to cut across and throw the stumps down. Pujara, who was face-down on the ground at the non-strikers' end, knew all his hard work had come undone by one dreadful mistake.
Meanwhile, Rahul kept cruising. He had driven extremely well and by now wasn't afraid to extend the arms and hit over the top. A good IPL - whether it makes one ready for international cricket or not - certainly does wonders to his confidence. Rahul had outshone Chris Gayle in the last season and his attacking game was on point in Kingston.