It might seem like a long time ago, but in the two practice games that India played ahead of the first Test in Antigua, Lokesh Rahul had scored half-centuries. He was forced to retire out on both occasions to give others a hit in the middle ahead of the Test series against the West Indies. A little earlier, he had joined the preparatory camp in his hometown Bengaluru soon after returning from a successful limited overs tour of Zimbabwe where he became the first Indian to register a century on ODI debut. Such is the competition for a spot in the India XI that Rahul still had to sit out for the first Test. When he finally made it to playing XI replacing the injured M Vijay for the second match at Sabina Park, Rahul pounced on the opportunity with a fluent 158 off 303 balls in extremely taxing conditions. His knock has not only helped India overcome the loss of Vijay but instead created a problem of plenty. It will be hard to ignore him and with Vijay expected to be fit for the next Test, selecting five batsmen will be a dilemma that captain Virat Kohli will have to deal with. After registering his third overseas century in just his sixth Test, the elegant right-hander shared his views in a candid chat with BCCI.TV. When you’re in fine rhythm and form, the changes you need to make for the longest format are more technical or mental? I think it is more of a mental change. You need to go out there and spend some more time. When you play ODI and T20, you feel you can go out there and hit every ball. The challenge is to leave a few balls initially and give the respect the new ball demands (in Tests). (You need to) keep your head down and spend some time on the wicket and once you're set, you can put the bad balls away. The challenge is to make that small change in your mind, take time, play responsibly, see what the situation is and see what the team demands. Three Test tons in six Tests. You have equaled Mohammad Azharuddin’s record of converting all of your first three fifties into hundreds. It's a big name to compete with. Personally, I am really happy. It is never easy to play a couple of games 7-8 months ago and play the next after whenever it is. The last game I played was in Sri Lanka around this time last year. When I wore the white jersey yesterday, all I wanted to do was just go out and perform. Sitting out and not playing a lot of games makes you hungry. You try and get as many runs as you can and try to make sure you never sit out. Those are the things you have to go through as a cricketer and in a team sport as only 11 can play. I am really happy with the way I batted today. It must be really tough to sit out. What are the things that you do in the period that when you get a chance, you can make the most it? Look, it is very easy to find motivation and inspiration because you are always sitting out and you see other guys doing well; it makes you hungry. It makes you do well. You want to score that winning hundred or a winning fifty. It is easy to look for motivation and inspiration, but the hard thing is to remain patient and keep working on your skills and keep working hard. Sometimes, you feel like you want to take a couple of days off as you are not playing the game. That's a challenge and as professional cricketers we understand that we need to be ready for any opportunity that might come anytime.

It was a wicket where your skill and patience was tested. Tell us about the challenges you faced on the Sabina Park wicket. When we bowled first, standing in slips, I kind of understood that the wicket was a bit damp and spongy and there was a tennis ball-like bounce and also it was seaming around. When I went into bat, I wanted to be positive and the only way I could put pressure was to put the bad balls away. That was the intent last evening, this morning it was different. I took my time and got settled. I told myself that I have to start from zero. The wicket was better than last evening, so I cut down on a few shots. I thoroughly enjoyed how I batted in this game and as an opening batsman, it gives you an immense satisfaction that you have done well on a challenging wicket. There was a long on fielder when you were on 94, but you still stepped out and cleared the fence to get to your century. Was it on impulse or pre-planned?

A lot of coaches will say that it is not the way to do it, but I feel like any big shot you want to play; be it a six or a sweep shot it is more pre-determined than to see after it is released out of the bowler's hand. I played on the bowler's mind. He (Roston Chase) bowled a couple of short balls before that and I thought he would want to toss it up and try and get me forward. That was more about me winning over the bowler's head (mind) than anything else. I don't enjoy being in the 90s, so I try to get out of it quickly. I am happy that it came off. You’ve now created a problem of plenty and given a headache to your captain ahead of the next match with your brilliant innings. I am sure Virat will enjoy this kind of a headache. I am always here to give people headaches and if given a chance, I will try and do my best. Obviously, they want to play the best XI and we all have the same goals to win games for our country. It is (selection) is not in my hand so what is important for me is to go out there and give my best and I happy with the way I have performed.