Mayank Agarwal, KL Rahul
Mayank Agarwal and KL Rahul [Photo-Twitter]

Mayank Agarwal and KL Rahul went hell for leather in Sharjah, smoking the Rajasthan Royals bowling-attack to all corners of the ground on Sunday. It was a masterclass by the Karnataka duo as they smashed records for fun.

Mayank Agarwal continued from where he had left in the first game but unlike his innings against the Delhi Capitals, where he took his time before exploding at the back-end, Agarwal hit his straps right from the very outset, dominating the Rajasthan Royals bowling attack with absolute disdain.

Anything pitched short was disdainfully smoked over backward square even as KL Rahul continued to paint the field with his sumptuous strokeplay. The duo brought up the 50-run-stand in just the 5th over and with the openers going great guns, Steve Smith turned to his spin-bowling duo but that didn’t have any effect on Mayank Agarwal. The Indian Test opener displayed why he is one of the best players of spin bowling in the current era as he took the attack to both Tewatia and Shreyas Gopal, smoking them for sixes on a consistent basis.

Mayank Agarwal brought up his 2nd IPL 2020 fifty with an inside-out six over extra-cover off Shreyas Gopal and the celebrated it by going downtown for yet another six to bring up KXIP’s hundred as he and KL Rahul became the first opening pair to rack up a 100+ stand in the 2020 IPL.

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Records galore for Mayank Agarwal and KL Rahul in Sharjah

Mayank Agarwal, KL Rahul
Mayank Agarwal [Photo-Twitter]
Records continued to tumble in Sharjah as the duo went past Steve Smith and Samson to register the highest partnership in IPL 2020. While Mayank was smoking them out of the ground, Rahul was displaying his silken touch, creaming boundaries for fun as he brought up his 2nd half-century of the tournament in the 12th over.

The moment that Mayank Agarwal had been waiting for finally came in the 15th over as he carted Shreyas Gopal for yet another boundary to not only notch up his maiden IPL ton but also become the second-fastest Indian to do so [in 45 balls just behind Yusuf Pathan, who had scored in 37 balls against MI in 2010]. Mayank’s innings and his partnership finally came to an end in the 17th over as the right-hander finally mistimes one straight to Sanju Samson at deep mid-wicket, but not before he and Rahul had notched up the third-highest opening stand in IPL history.

 

Here’s how Twitter reacted to Mayank Agarwal’s hundred and his 183-run-stand with KL Rahul-

Here’s how Twitter reacted-

Yash Mittal

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Just a student of this beautiful game called cricket. Writer. Storyteller.