"Most hideous innings played in the history of IPL ever" - Dodda Ganesh lashes out at KL Rahul after his 20-ball 18 against RCB
Former Indian cricketer Dodda Ganesh slammed KL Rahul for his uncharacteristic knock against the Royal Challengers Bangalore at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Monday, April 10. Ganesh lashed out at the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) skipper, saying that it's not school cricket.
Chasing 213 to win, LSG lost an explosive Kyle Mayers in the opening over. Deepak Hooda and Krunal Pandya also departed cheaply in Wayne Parnell's first over.
While Marcus Stoinis opened up after a few deliveries, Rahul struggled to change gears and kept getting the singles. Rahul's partnership with Stoinis of 76 ended as the latter holed out to deep point for 65. The captain also perished in the next over for 18 off 20 balls.
Meanwhile, Ganesh took to his official Twitter handle and wrote:
"This innings from KL Rahul has to be the most hideous innings played in the history of IPL ever considering the context of the game. Man. What's in his mind? Seriously. This can't happen for so long at this level. It's not school cricket."
This innings from KL Rahul has to be the most hideous innings played in the history of IPL ever considering the context of the game. Man. What’s in his mind? Seriously. This can’t happen for so long at this level. It’s not school cricket #DoddaMathu #IPL2023 #CricketTwitter
Meanwhile, in the first innings, the Royal Challengers lost only two wickets after losing the toss as Faf du Plessis and Virat Kohli forged a 96-run opening stand. After Kohli's departure, du Plessis added 115 off 50 deliveries with Glenn Maxwell, who was castled by Mark Wood in the 20th over.
Lucknow Super Giants get over the line in a dramatic final over despite KL Rahul's failure
KL Rahul's uncharacteristic knock did not deprive the Super Giants of victory as Stoinis and Nicholas Pooran played critical roles in their one-wicket triumph. After Pooran's whirlwind 18-ball 62, the Royal Challengers fought back with a few wickets.
However, it was still the Super Giants' game to lose, as they required 24 off 19 deliveries at that point. Harshal Patel, who bowled the final over, snared two scalps as the target came down to one required off the final delivery. Avesh Khan sneaked a bye to complete the win as Dinesh Karthik fumbled behind the stumps.