Former Indian wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik lauded veteran batter KL Rahul for his sensational hundred despite having no batting time in the series, in the third ODI against the West Indies in New Chandigarh. However, India managed back-to-back incredible run-chases in the first two ODIs without losing more than two wickets. However, they lost two early wickets in the third game and were three down in the 25th over when Rahul came out to bat. He then scored a brilliant
129* off 87 balls at No.5.
Talking about KL Rahul’s outstanding knock, Karthik said on Cricbuzz, “The way he paced his innings and played to the situation was highly impressive. When you’ve not batted in a long time and every day you see someone else do well, you want to almost get in there and do something. He had not even touched his bat in the first two ODIs despite practicing. In such situations, you sometimes become desperate and make the odd early error. But KL Rahul’s experience came through.”
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“The skill was always there. And he was there till the end. That’s the insurance you get with KL Rahul. He doesn’t give it away easily. He’s very underrated and someone we speak very little about. But he has very good impact performances and is very useful for the team. He has all the shots, but at times, he has had to curb his instincts to play the situation,” he added again.
Former Indian captain Ajinkya Rahane applauded KL Rahul’s ability to maintain an excellent strike rate while playing orthodox cricketing shots as well. Rahul finished with an innings strike rate of almost 150 and boasts a huge career ODI strike rate of over 92 in 91 innings as well.
“He (Rahul) can adapt to every situation and all conditions. That’s why his average and strike rate are so good. He plays differently at the start of his innings. But the best part about him is that he plays proper cricketing shots and still has an excellent strike rate. That makes it very difficult for the bowlers. He’s very underrated,” said Rahane.
