'It doesn't Happen In 1.5 Overs,' says KL Rahul, revealing that he was taken aback to see India reeling at 2/3 against Australia.

After taking early hits in India's World Cup opener, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul showed incredible resiliency. India defeated Australia by six wickets under the leadership of the pair.

India was chasing Australia's 200, and they were in a vulnerable position after losing two wickets for three runs in the first 12 balls of the innings. But then Rahul (97 not out) and Kohli (85 not out) came together to form a crucial 164-run partnership for the fourth wicket.

The quick succession of wickets caught Rahul off guard and he had to make quick adjustments. He characterised the circumstance as unanticipated.

"I didn't anticipate it...It doesn't happen in 1.5 overs; it takes four or five overs," Rahul stated.

"Ishan (Kishan) left after I got out of the shower and just sat down. I had to quickly return, get taped up, and put on my pads before Rohit Sharma left. Shreyas Iyer will bat a little bit, so I expected to get at least two overs. However, I was too busy padding up when he left, and I hurried out," Rahul continued.

Rahul claimed that despite the mayhem, he modified his strategy and took cues from his time playing Test cricket. He remained calm and stopped Australia's progress.

"I wanted to play the first ten overs like a Test match, that was my game plan. Kohli, you were happy to just bash things around, but you consistently conveyed that intention. You will punish them if they come clean or disappear," Rahul declared.

Kohli emphasised how the difficult conditions against Australia worked to their advantage.

It definitely made it easier for both of us to play more traditionally. In a BCCI video, Kohli said to Rahul, "Those difficult situations definitely helped us to eradicate the errors and keep rotating the strike as well."

On October 11, India's second World Cup match will take place against Afghanistan at Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi.