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KL Rahul
The Indian Premier League(IPL) auction is underway and every team is ready to do their fair share of planning to perform better in the tournament. The Lucknow SuperGiants(LSG) has already shown a lot of potential as they have made the playoffs in their first two seasons. Before the auction KL Rahul suggested the management that he will bat in the middle order. This could be a change in strategy as the LSG skipper has been the first choice opener in the previous seasons.
Rahul is most likely to be the first choice wicket keeper batter for India in the test series in South Africa. With a lot of opening batters in the squad it seems like he might be enjoying his batting position in the middle order. This is no surprise, since Rahul has shown great consistency at the no.5 position in the Asia Cup and World Cup. Rahul had scored 452 runs in 11 games in the World Cup at an average of 75 and was exceptional behind the stumps as well.
T20’s might be a different game
Rahul might have displayed some great performances in the middle order in the world cup with his ability to anchor the innings and also accumulate runs when needed. However, the T20 format might not give a lot of time to Rahul to be set at the crease since Rahul likes to take some time to get his innings going. This might be a problem for the cricketer, but we cannot doubt the talent and skill he possess.
KL Rahul has been a middle order batter for a long time in T20's as well, which is also a factor the management should look at. This can be a problem since the One Day and Test format are very different and he will not have enough time to adapt to his game.
Rahul might not be a powerful ball striker, but he can play the big shots when needed. He has the ability to switch gears as he has shown in the past. He is still the same batter, who scored one of the fastest fifties in the IPL with his gifted shot making skills. Adding to this, his performances in the world cup will still give him a lot of confidence going into the South Africa series and also into the next IPL season.
Overall, Rahul has already shown what he can do as a middle order batter in the last few matches he has played and it will be interesting to see what he can bring in the T20’s as well. The World class ability he possess cannot be underestimated as he has proven himself time and again in the field.
Here's how the fans have reacted to the news:
He is actually beast in middle order
— Shubham Aryan (@Shubham43358099) December 13, 2023
Don't know if he can shine in that position. In t20's unless top order goes early , he might get only 5-6 overs to bat.
— Karthik (@vsk_says) December 13, 2023
The thing is he might even do wonders in IPL in middle order and make his spot fixed for t20 WC, as he is miles more skilled than ishan, jitesh and samson... But no one wants him to play t20 man.. I don't want wickets to fall off and him going in his shell & playing tuktuk😭😭
— Piyush singh (@ChaosCatalyst0) December 13, 2023
He will be beast in middle order
— 530 (@5srjnnre) December 13, 2023
I'm sure he'll take the challenge in stride. It'll be interesting to see how he fares batting in the middle order for LSG, and keeping wickets in the Test series against South Africa.
— Sonam Murarkar (@murarkar_sonam) December 13, 2023
He is doing so , to perform in the middle order in IPL and so that he can get to play in WC 2024 in the middle order. There will be to many contenders for that middle order spot , Pant,Samson,Jitesh,Kishan ,KL Rahul#INDvsSA #INDvBAN pic.twitter.com/w3fzsWgdLk
— Shivam Sopori🇮🇳 (@shivamsopori) December 13, 2023
It's great news!
— SOYAB (@soyab_05) December 13, 2023
I really appreciate kl Rahul adaptability to change to middle order from being an opener. Currently India needs experienced batsmen in the middle order in both T20 and test. I hope kl fits the position and performs well
— shyam1729 (@Shyamsunder1706) December 13, 2023