KL Rahul answered his critics in style by batting fearlessly while hitting a 50-ball 91 in the opening match for Punjab Kings against Rajasthan Royals at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Monday. KL Rahul was criticized for not batting at a quicker pace last season.
KL Rahul was the top scorer and Orange Cap winner in Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 held at UAE with 670 runs in 14 matches but questions were raised for his below-par strike rate with Punjab Kings failing to get past the finish line on multiple occasions despite posting above-par totals.
KL Rahul Scores At A Strike Rate Of 182 Against Rajasthan Better Than IPL 2020’s Strike Rate Of 129.34
KL Rahul had scored a strike rate of 129.34 even as the likes of his teammates, Mayank Agarwal, Chris Gayle, and Nicholas Pooran scored at a quicker pace last season. He got as many as 6 fifty-plus scores(5 fifties and 1 ton) but his strike rate, especially in the powerplay, was under the scanner.
However, he made a statement as early as his first outing of IPL 2021. The Punjab Kings captain smashed 91 from just 50 balls as he helped his side post a mammoth total of 221 against Rajasthan Royals at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Chris Gayle contributed with a 40 while Deepak Hooda hit a quickfire cameo of 64 off only 28 balls.
KL Rahul hit as many as 5 sixes and 7 boundaries as he finished his knock with a strike rate of 182.00. KL Rahul missed out on an opportunity to become only the 2nd India batsman to hit more than 2 IPL hundreds but he was going for the big shot even when batting in the 90s.
KL Rahul Praised By Sanjay Manjrekar While Wasim Jaffer Hopes He Will Play More Aggressively In IPL 2021
It required a brilliant fielding effort from RR’s Rahul Tewatia at the mid-wicket boundary to get rid of KL Rahul who tried to clear the fence in the final over of Punjab Kings’ innings.
Heaping praise on KL’s approach, former India batsman Sanjay Manjrekar said: “Loved the 91 but loved the strike rate even more! If K L Rahul bats at a strike rate of over 140, which he can easily, Punjab Kings will have a much better IPL than the last.”
Notably, Punjab Kings’ newly-appointed batting coach Wasim Jaffer had hinted before the start of the season that KL Rahul will bat more freely at the top of the order with compatriot Mayank Agarwal.
“KL batted a little timidly last season. He probably batted deeper because there was not much batting after No. 5, and Glenn Maxwell was not firing. He took that responsibility on himself to try and stay at the crease and get the job done. This time around, everyone will see an aggressive KL Rahul for sure,” Jaffer had told the Times of India.
For Rajasthan Royals, the star with the ball was young Chetan Sakariya who finished with figures of 3 for 31 when all their other bowlers (barring Riyan Parag) went for more than 10 runs an over.
Sanju Samson then looked to pull off an incredible come from behind victory but failed to hit a six off the last ball as Punjab won by only 4 runs. Sanju Samson who debuted as skipper scored 119 but was dismissed in the last ball.
Brief Scores: Punjab Kings 221/6 (KL Rahul 91, Deepak Hooda 64, Chetan Sakariya 3/31) beat Rajasthan Royals 217/7 (Sanju Samson 119, Riyan Parag 25, Arshdeep Singh 3/35) by 4 runs