KL Rahul after scoring 98 in PBKS’s win: One of those days where I could hit every ball
Punjab Kings captain KL Rahul said he was happy to play a winning knockout against Chennai Super Kings as his team needed it from him.
Skipper Rahul was on the attack from the word go, launching into the CSK bowlers. The stylish right-hander clobbered eight sixes to go with seven boundaries. He finished it in style with a big six off Shardul Thakur.
Punjab Kings crush Chennai Super Kings by six wickets in an inconsequential IPL encounter on Thursday. Chasing 135 for victory, the Punjab team stormed to victory in 13 overs as the CSK skipper MS Dhoni could not find answers to stop Rahul’s onslaught.
“When you get going like that you feel like you can hit every ball. You need to hold your shape. The only thing I keep telling myself is I am not a power-hitter. I still rely on timing and getting my body in good positions,” KL Rahul, winning captain and Player of the Match, said in the post-match presentation ceremony.
“So I keep telling myself to set up strong, watch the ball and trust my instincts to play the right shot. In the nets, I train my mind and train my instincts to make the right choice in the middle. There’s no better feeling than hitting the ball in the middle of the bat and watching the ball fly all over the park.
“It was just what the team needs. I know there has been a lot of talk in the last 3-4 years about my strike rate and me playing slowly. But only my team and I know what’s my role and what my responsibility is. I tried to play the role the team requires of me every game. I feel I am letting the team down if I play the kind of cricket I want to play. It’s always team first for me. That’s how I have grown up and that’s how I will continue to play. Today the team needed this. I was happy that I could play this kind of a knock,” Rahul added.
