Indian batsman KL Rahul said he was “scared” to leave home and suffered major self-doubts after being kicked off the tour of Australia with teammate Hardik Pandya over sexist remarks.

The pair were sent home in January after a chat show interview was aired in which Pandya bragged about his success with women as Rahul, sitting alongside, enjoyed his comments, prompting a storm of criticism.

“The last two months have been very, very tough for me,” Rahul told India Today television.

“When it happened I started to doubt myself as a person.

“I was hated nationally and it was not easy. I always thought I was a good person and then I started to believe otherwise.”