India hosted a Test match for the first time in 14 years without three of its veterans: Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Ravichandran Ashwin. This left veterans Ravindra Jadeja and KL Rahul being the seniormost members in the dressing room. KL Rahul confesses that on the England tour, "it felt a little strange" to not have the three big names by his side, but now he has accepted the challenge of filling the shoes for the team. Since the England tour, Rahul has been in brilliant form, averaging 57.45 in the absence of Kohli, Rohit, and Ashwin. In Ahmedabad for the IND vs WI 1st Test, Rahul notched up his third century of 2025, proving his capability to handle added pressure. During the post-match show with JioHotstar, KL Rahul said: “I don’t know if it’s happened organically, but I’ve generally not thought too much about it. Of course, I miss having those two or three senior guys around in the dressing room—most of my Test career has been with them. When I walked into the dressing room in England and saw Rohit, Virat, and Ashwin not around, it felt a little strange because they had always been there.” Also Read | KL Rahul whistles and celebrates his second Test century at home The Void Left by the Big Three Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Ravichandran Ashwin played 46 Tests in combination for India from 2013, with 27 of them being victories. KL Rahul was their dressing room roommate for 17 of those Tests since 2014, his debut year. Rahul played mostly under their shadow during this time, and sometimes his contribution went unnoticed, particularly with frequent changes in batting slots. While Rahul has made nine Test hundreds outside of India, he had just one home Test hundred at Ahmedabad prior to this match, his second in nine years. Rahul has achieved stability and clarity from coach Gautam Gambhir and captain Shubman Gill since the Big Three are not around. He now bears the responsibility of mentoring younger players, as Kohli, Rohit, and Ashwin used to. Rahul added: "Somewhere along the way, you get the sense that, as a senior player, you need to step up and take a bit more responsibility so that the younger guys can focus on their cricket without feeling burdened. Even the way Gautam Gambhir and Shubman Gill have started talking to me has been slightly different, which gives you that sense that you need to step up and try to fill in some big boots. At the end of the day, though, I just try to do my job. I’m happy that I’m doing it well so far." KL Rahul's recent form and a role as a leader hold the key to a new era for India's Test team as the team moves towards a post-Kohli-Rohit-Ashwin era.