IPL 2021: Ramiz Raja lauds KL Rahul’s class; suggests a new T20 approach for him

IPL 2021: Ramiz Raja lauds KL Rahul’s class; suggests a new T20 approach for him

KL Rahul

Ramiz Raja, a Pakistani legend, has praised Punjab Kings captain KL Rahul for his classic batting style in the ongoing IPL season. After Ravichandran Ashwin was traded to Delhi Capitals, KL Rahul was appointed Punjab’s captain in 2019.

Rahul is currently one of the most attractive batters in the world of cricket. The Karnataka-born cricketer can smash every bowling attack in the world while he’s on form. In the last two IPL seasons, Rahul has been in outstanding form, leading his team from the front.

‘Watching KL Rahul bat is pleasing to the eye’

Ramiz Raja
Ramiz Raja

In his Khaleej Times column, Ramiz Raja expressed his thoughts on Rahul. Ramiz Raja believes KL Rahul is  aesthetically one of the most appealing batters on the eye.

“KL Rahul is a viewers’ delight. He is aesthetically one of the most pleasing batsmen on the eye, a purist to the hilt. For someone who is betrothed to technique, dancing to the music notes of T20 batting can be one hell of a challenge,” writes Ramiz Raja.

Ramiz further continued that Rahul is certainly burdened with all three duties for PBKS, and while his responsibility to bat through the innings is motivating, it isn’t yielding the desired results.

“But the gig gets harder for him at Punjab Kings, though. His job has the layer of captaincy as well. And so here is a teaser — he has won nine out of 10 matches for India when he has batted for 40 balls or more, but only eight out of 18 matches for Punjab Kings as captain when it’s been a 40-ball plus innings,” he added.

KL Rahul smashed 91 runs in 50 balls against Rajasthan Royals in a game that Punjab won by a whisker. On the other hand, he just managed 61 in 51 balls against Delhi Capitals, as PBKS made 195 and lost by six wickets. He was accused of wasting balls and not accelerating enough.

“As an opener at Punjab Kings, he has a choice to set the tone of the innings. Maybe, he puts too much price on his wicket and wants to stay till the end which pulls down the scoring rate. The power play batting thrust loses its steam once the field is opened up. The overall run rate in the match was 10.25. But Rahul could only muster a strike rate of 7.17,” continued Ramiz Raja.

After that, Ramiz Raja indicated that Rahul should aim for a 30-ball 50 and that the Punjab Kings’ tactic of holding wickets in hand for death overs is faulty. Rahul was traditionally reported to be playing slowly in the IPL so that he could bat deep and relieve the pressure on Punjab’s middle order, which isn’t particularly powerful.

The Punjab Kings’ strategy to keep wickets in hand is a flawed take on the game as time and again strike rate has won the battle over archaic wickets in hand logic. KL Rahul might end up as someone with a huge talent that shot himself in the foot. He is a match-winner, but he should adopt a new T20 approach — where he targets a 50 off 30 balls. And that will make him a box office attraction,” Ramiz Raja concluded.

Also Read: IPL 2021: Sunil Gavaskar is happy to see MS Dhoni bat at No. 4