WATCH | KL Rahul takes on Jhulan Goswami in the nets in a never-seen-before encounter

It is not every day that one sees women cricketers interact with male counterparts owing to completely different schedules and professional commitments. To see them battle each other on the field and hone their skills together is an even rarer sight but one the world was privileged to get access to recently.

A video from the nets of the National Cricket Academy has been going viral on the internet showing batting talisman KL Rahul facing a few deliveries from all-time great Jhulan Goswami. The first delivery in the clip is a full one just outside off which Rahul manages to drive elegantly towards covers. Goswami then proceeds to bowl a length ball, enabling the Lucknow Super Giants captain to rock up on his back foot and fiercely cut the ball away square of the wicket.

Rahul is recovering from surgery for a sports hernia that has kept him out of the game since the end of IPL 2022. He has missed 12 T20Is, 3 ODIs and a Test over the last two months but has now undergone a successful surgery in Spain and is set to return in the upcoming tour of the West Indies. What better way to get back in shape than to face off against the 6th-ranked Women’s ODI bowler in the world who holds the record for most WODI wickets in the history of the game.

Goswami meanwhile has not clad the Indian jersey since March, having last featured in a dismal Women’s World Cup campaign. The star-pacer only plies her trade in the longer formats now, having retired from T20Is four years ago. She has since missed out on an ODI series against Sri Lanka and is not expected to return before September when India is scheduled to travel to England for three ODIs.

It was quite a pleasant joy to watch two big names in the Indian circle facing each other, giving the fans something to cheer on a cricket-less day.