KL Rahul averages an incredible 66.1 against the Mumbai Indians. (P.C.:iplt20.com)
After three consecutive wins, KL Rahul and his men had to face a three-run defeat against the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in their last game. The Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) captain himself got cleaned up on a golden duck and will be keen to get back to scoring big runs.
Arguably, LSG couldn’t have asked for a better opponent than the Mumbai Indians (MI) for their next fixture on Saturday. The five-time IPL champions are undergoing a disastrous season so far, having lost all five games, and are at rock bottom in the points table.
Moreover, KL Rahul will fancy his chances of scoring big against MI, given his incredible numbers against this franchise. In 14 games, the 29-year-old has scored 661 runs at a staggering average of 66.10 with five half-centuries and a 100 to his name.
LSG will be hopeful that their captain fires on all cylinders against a beleaguered MI side to get the Super Giants back to winning ways. On that note, let’s take a look at the three best knocks of KL Rahul against the Men in Blue and Gold:
#3 77(51), Match 36, IPL 2020
One of the few teams that got the better of the mighty Mumbai side in IPL 2020 was the Kings XI Punjab, who were later renamed to the Punjab Kings (PBKS). In arguably the most thrilling encounter between the two sides in IPL history, KL Rahul led from the front with the bat.
A half-century from Quinton de Kock and some fine hitting from Kieron Pollard and Nathan Coulter-Nile ensured that MI posted a competitive total of 176/6 in their 20 overs.
Chasing 177 against a potent MI bowling attack was not going to be easy. However, KL Rahul once again played the role of an anchor and paced his innings to perfection, scoring 77 runs off just 51 balls.
In a game of incredible twists and turns, PBKS also managed 176/6 in their 20 overs and the tie had to be settled with a Super Over. Even the first Super Over ended in a tie, thanks to some brilliant bowling from Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami.
In the second Super Over, Chris Jordan kept the big-hitters Pollard and Hardik Pandya relatively quiet. This proved to be a game-defining over as Mayank Agarwal and Chris Gayle comfortably chased down the runs, giving PBKS a memorable win.
#2 94(60), Match 50, IPL 2018
With both MI and PBKS eyeing a place in the IPL 2018 playoffs, this encounter was extremely crucial. PBKS managed to restrict MI to 186/8 in their 20 overs and on a small ground like Wankhede, they fancied their chances of chasing it down.
Chris Gayle departed relatively early. But KL Rahul found an able partner in Aaron Finch. While the two were at the crease, PBKS looked to be cruising to the total. However, MI’s trump card Jasprit Bumrah brought his team back into the game with some crucial wickets.
While KL Rahul was there at the crease, Punjab still had their noses in front. But the star batter fell one hit short of what could have been a well-deserved hundred. Bumrah held his nerves and delivered stunning figures of 3/15 as MI won the game by three runs.
#1 100*(64), Match 24, IPL 2019
MI were without the services of skipper Rohit Sharma and this was a great chance for PBKS to take advantage of it. KL Rahul and Chris Gayle got off to a flying start and added 116 runs for the first wicket.
Mumbai did claw their way back by striking at regular intervals, but KL Rahul’s class was just too good on the day even for a world-class bowler like Bumrah. Rahul took Hardik Pandya to the cleaners in the last over to bring up a sensational maiden IPL hundred.
MI didn’t begin their chase well and kept on losing wickets. At the halfway stage, it looked all but sealed for Punjab to take away two points. However, captain Kieron Pollard once again proved why he is such a valuable asset to the five-time IPL champions.
Pollard smashed 83 off just 31 balls with three fours and 10 sixes to take MI to the brink of victory. Although Mumbai lost their captain in the last over, the likes of Rahul Chahar and Alzarri Joseph held their nerves and gave MI a fantastic last-ball win.
