‘He wanted to save his wicket rather than…’: Pujara calls out KL Rahul in ‘should have attacked a bit more’ criticism
Cheteshwar Pujara was critical of KL Rahul's batting approach vs RR, and he called out the DC star for lacking attacking intent.
After a fine start to his IPL 2025 campaign, KL Rahul’s momentum has slowed down as the wicketkeeper-batter trudged to a 32-ball 38-run knock vs RR on Wednesday. Rahul was eventually dismissed by Jofra Archer as DC posted 188/5 in their IPL 2025 fixture, RR reached 188/4 in the run-chase as Mitchell Starc enforced a Super Over. Then in the Super Over, Starc’s heroics won the match for DC. During the Super Over, DC were set a target of 12 runs and reached 13/0 in 0.4 overs, with Rahul registering 7* off three balls, and also hitting a four.
Speaking on ESPNCricinfo, Cheteshwar Pujara criticised Rahul’s batting approach, felt that the India star didn’t attack the RR bowlers.
Also Read: ‘One person never takes the call': Nitish Rana on RR not choosing him for Super Over against DC despite 51 off 28
“KL, being the senior player, I think he wanted to play 15-20 balls and then go out. But, at the same time, he should have attacked a bit more, because he was set, he had enough chance to look at the pitch, and he knew the conditions by then,” he said.
“His batting order has changed a bit, too. So, I mean, he is just trying to figure out. He normally does go hard in the powerplay, but after that, that is the period where he needs to be a little more aggressive. It looked like he wanted to save his wicket rather than play his natural game,” he added.
KL Rahul not in good form
Even against MI, Rahul failed to find his footing in the game, and managed only 15 off 13 balls. In the Super Over against RR, Rahul found some form, taking advantage of Sandeep Sharma’s tendency to bowl slower deliveries.
Speaking after the match, Tristan Stubbs, who batted with Rahul in the Super Over, said, “He (Sandeep) was going for slower-ball bouncers, so I committed to that shot. KL told me take your time, this is all about handling pressure.”
After the win, DC are now top of the IPL 2025 points table with 10 points, packed with five wins and a defeat. Meanwhile, RR are eighth, with two wins and five defeats.
