DC vs LSG: "If this doesn't wake up KL Rahul..": Mitchell McClenaghan issues warning to LSG skipper after slow innings vs SRH

Former New Zealand pacer and cricket expert, Mitchell McClenaghan, urged Indian batter KL Rahul to change his batting style if he wants to continue playing T20 cricket after his yet another slow innings for the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in the ongoing IPL 2024.

Rahul played one of the slowest T20 innings of 29 runs off 33 balls during the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) humiliating defeat of 10 wickets against the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the 57th match of the ongoing IPL 2024 at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on May 8.

The wicketkeeper-batter was already dropped from India’s T20I team and even was not picked for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2024, losing races to Rishabh Pant and Sanju Samson. However, the LSG skipper’s numbers in the ongoing IPL 2024 are not that good, but it was his playing style that went against him.

KL Rahul can't play with such pace in T20s: Mitchell McClenaghan

He has amassed 460 runs in 12 matches at an average of 38 and a strike rate of 136. After the SRH vs LSG match, McClenaghan warned Rahul to wake up and change his playing style to match up with the fast pace of T20 cricket. He also mentioned Virat Kohli’s comeback and expressed his confidence that Rahul would make a strong comeback to his form.

Mitchell McClenaghan said on ESPNCricinfo’s “Time Out” show: “If this doesn't wake KL Rahul up to the style of cricket that he needs to play going forward to be successful and to continue to play for India, you know, I don't know what will. I think can't do it. Absolutely he can't do it. He can play aggressively because we've seen him do it before. And I think he's got to get past, very similar to what we've seen with Virat Kohli.

KL feels like he is the only person who can score runs, and is like I need to score, I need to score. He needs to trust the other guys. He needs to trust the other guys to do the job. It looks like he's carrying the whole team on his back, thinking that he doesn't bat the innings, that they're not going to get a score. And then, so if he does get out, they're a long way, like tonight, they're a long way behind where they need to be.”

KL Rahul needs support from India and LSG: Mitchell McClenaghan

McClenaghan further said that Rahul has a really good coach, Justin Langer, and good management at LSG, and they will really help him, saying they can give him the confidence that “it's okay to fail, and we're not going to drop you." He also feels it will be a big help for Rahul if that message comes from Indian head coach Rahul Dravid and skipper Rohit Sharma.

The former Mumbai Indians (MI) pacer wants Dravid and Rohit to back him all the time and support him to change the style of play, saying if they can unlock Rahul’s real T20 mode, he's one of the best batters going around. McClenaghan is confident that he will bounce back from this.

Watch Here:

'If this doesn't wake KL Rahul up, I don't know what will'@Mitch_Savage | #SRHvLSG | #TimeOut pic.twitter.com/eIKXQSZZnk

— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) May 9, 2024