KL Rahul Must Not Worry About Others If KXIP Are To Go Up In The Points Table: Sanjay Manjrekar

Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has opened up on Kings XI Punjab’s woes, captained by KL Rahul. Time is fast running out for Kings XI Punjab as they have lost five out of their six games so far and staring at yet another underwhelming edition of IPL. Sanjay Manjrekar has urged KL Rahul to stick to his natural game and not worry out others if KXIP are to revive their fortunes.

With 313 runs in six games, KL Rahul is the highest run-getter in IPL 2020 so far. So far, he has a century and two half-centuries; however, his strike rate has come under question in the last few games. Experts have questioned the skipper’s lack of acceleration earlier in the innings and playing the anchor role when the team needs quick runs. However, the 28-year old prefers taking responsibility as a leader and conceded that strike rates are overrated.

Sanjay Manjrekar lauded KL Rahul as a sensational player and was always looking forward to the right-handed batsman captaining and how it affects his batting. Manjrekar believes that for Kings XI Punjab to improve their standing in the points table, the Karnataka batsman must stop worrying about others.

“For Punjab to go up in the points table, KL Rahul must not worry about others. One of the many points of interest for me in this tournament was KL Rahul, the captain, and the possible effects of captaincy on his batting. First things first, Rahul is just a sensational player, who plays the modern 360-degrees game like few others; he is the only one who makes it looks classical,” Manjrekar stated as quoted by Times of India.

Sanjay Manjrekar compares KL Rahul’s strike rate from the previous seasons:

The 53-year old further said that KL Rahul’s strike rate from 158 in 2018 dropped significantly to 135 in 2019 and is currently 136. He believes that captaincy does not seem to affect the 28-year old as much as putting a higher price on his wicket since 2018.

“When I look at his numbers that season (2019), the strike rate had dropped significantly, in the 130s. This year too, his strike rate is again in the same region of 130. I don’t think it’s as much as the captaincy responsibility that’s weighing him down as much as Rahul himself putting a greater prize on his wicket post-2018,” he added.

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