‘KL Rahul said Virat bhai main hoo na, I can also chase targets and did it’: DC batters blazing knock hailed in Pakistan
KL Rahul announced himself in IPL 2025 with a sparkling 77 against Chennai Super Kings. He then quietly reminded DC mentor Kevin Pietersen that he had once criticised him for his strike rate in T20 cricket. In DC’s next match against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), Rahul blasted an unbeaten 93 off 53 balls to help DC win by six wickets. After hitting the match-winning runs, he marked his territory with the bat and announced it to the world that the Chinnaswamy Stadium was his home turf.
It has been a comeback of sorts for Rahul in T20 cricket. Dropped from India’s T20I squad after the World Cup in 2022 and then heavily criticised for his slow strike rate for Lucknow Super Giants, Rahul expected RCB to bid for him in the mega auction but it didn’t happen. Rahul, instead, was picked up by DC and against RCB on a ground which has nurtured Rahul, the right-hander, showed that class is permanent.
“Form is temporary, class is permanent, this is the best way to describe KL Rahul,” said former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali on his YouTube channel.
Tim David (185) and Phil Salt (210) made runs at a higher strike rate but through brute force and the readiness to travel on riskier routes either at Power Play or at the death overs.
But Rahul’s fifty was smoothly paced — from a cautious 29 off 29 balls, the right-hander made the remaining 64 runs off just 24 balls on Thursday.
Basit Ali said Rahul single-handedly won it for DC and almost announced to the chase master Virat Kohli that he could also chase targets quite well. “KL Rahul single-handedly beat RCB. It was Rahul vs RCB. Pure class. Whenever he plays such knocks, he takes the game away. KL Rahul ne bola main hoo na Virat bhai and he chased it down. Virat is a chase master but today it was Rahul,” he added.
Basit praised Rahul’s ability to hit different parts of the ground. “He stood there at one end and when he decided to change gears, he turned the match towards the DC. The over in which he hit Livingstone for 14 runs was the turning point. He is Test match class. He dances down the track to hit sixes, can go the backfoot and pull balls for sixes. Du Plessis and McGurk were all dismissed early. But Rahul put on a good partnership with Stubbs, who also played a good hand.”
RCB’s mentor, Dinesh Karthik, appreciated the way Rahul played his knock, particularly because the 32-year-old is still a floater through the batting line-up in whichever team he plays.
“It’s a very challenging to bat at different positions in T20. But he’s done that really nicely in the recent past. I’ve believed he’s a high-quality middle-order batter. He’s tweaked a bit,” said Karthik.