"Rahul's absence will be tricky but they need not worry"- Suresh Raina on LSG missing KL Rahul
Former Indian cricketer Suresh Raina feels that the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) still have enough resources to negotiate the remainder of their IPL 2023 campaign without their captain KL Rahul.
The LSG skipper injured himself in the match against the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and has been ruled out of the tournament. All-rounder Krunal Pandya has been named as the stand-in skipper for the remainder of the tournament.
Raina has been quite impressed with the way Krunal has led the side in Rahul's absence. He feels that with quality players like Quinton de Kock around, Lucknow shouldn't focus on the options that they don't have at the moment.
In a media interaction arranged by Jio Cinema, Suresh Raina, who is also an IPL expert, explained how LSG need to focus on the final few games of the league stage to ensure qualification.
"Rahul's injury has been unfortunate, but I was impressed with Krunal Pandya's captaincy and with the way he rotated his bowlers," Raina said. "Rahul's absence will be tricky but I think they need not worry as they have other players like De Kock, Mayers, Badoni, Krunal etc.
"When it comes to the playoffs, it's about playing the situation and that will be on their minds."
Class is permanent: Suresh Raina backs Rohit Sharma to come good with the bat
Mumbai Indians (MI) skipper Rohit Sharma has had a torrid run in IPL 2023 so far and has failed to score even a single run in his last two outings. However, Suresh Raina believes the explosive right-hander will eventually come good and that Mumbai need him to fire in the last few league games that they have.
On this, Raina stated:
"I think Rohit had lead the team really well. He is just missing a death bowler, someone like Jasprit Bumrah. He hasn't done well with the bat of late but if MI beat RCB tomorrow then they could get into the playoffs spots.
"He will need to raise his game as it is an important phase of the tournament. But I feel class is permanent and he will find form soon. I don't think MI or their fans will be worried about his form as it is just a matter of getting 1-2 good scores under his belt."
MI will face RCB in a massive encounter at the Wankhede Stadium on Wednesday, May 10, as the result could have a direct impact on their chances of qualifying for the playoffs.