IPL 2024: Focus on KL Rahul to prove himself ahead of World Cup selection

KL Rahul (Pic: File Pic)

With the T20 World Cup 2024 selection just around the corner, KL Rahul has the final chance to claim his spot in the Indian Cricket Team when Lucknow Super Giants will take on Mumbai Indians at the Ekana Cricket Stadium on Tuesday.

Rahul's strike-rate in T20 cricket has always been a bone of contention. Despite the advantage of field restrictions in the Powerplay, Rahul has often started his innings on a slow note in the IPL. However, the LSG captain has managed to change gears this season.

In the IPL 2024, KL Rahul scored 378 runs at a strike rate of 144.27 but it is less than Rishabh Pant and Sanju Samson.

Rishabh Pant who returned to the action after a long period has all but sealed the first wicketkeeper's spot in India's squad for the T20 World Cup 2024 in the USA and the West Indies. Pant has been displaying his exceptional skills with the big gloves and has also showcased decent form with the bat. On the other hand, Sanju Samson also has played match-winning knocks for Rajasthan Royals.

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In such situations, Rahul has to play fearlessly not just to seal his spot in the Indian squad but also to help Lucknow Super Giants reach the score of 200 runs, which has become a norm in this edition.

LSG were handed a seven-wicket loss by Rajasthan Royals, who chased the 197-run target with six balls to spare. The onus will also be on the team's big-hitting troika of Quinton de Kock, Marcus Stoinis and Nicholas Pooran to hit those towering maximums and get match-winning totals as the race for the playoff heats.

They will fancy their chances against a struggling Mumbai bowling unit which was carted all over the park by the Delhi Capitals batters the other day.

MI bowlers struggled against the young Jake Fraser-McGurk, who played a gritty knock in the powerplay. Even lead pacer Jasprit Bumrah was smashed for 19 runs in an over and the likes of Luke Wood and skipper Hardik Pandya were pummelled into submission. They would look to do better.

Mumbai Indians find themselves in a precarious position sitting ninth on the points table. They need to win all their matches to stay alive in the competition.

Mumbai Indians as a whole will need to boost their performances. Rohit Sharma and premier batsman Suryakumar Yadav need to perform consistently to boost the chances of their playoffs in the IPL 2024. All-rounder Pandya has flopped with the bat and ball this season. He did get his highest score this season the other day but more would be needed to make it to the T20 World Cup 2024 squad.

IPL 2024, Squads for LSG vs MI:

Mumbai Indians: Hardik Pandya (c), Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Dewald Brevis, Jasprit Bumrah, Piyush Chawla, Gerald Coetzee, Tim David, Shreyas Gopal, Ishan Kishan (wk), Anshul Kamboj, Kumar Kartikeya, Akash Madhwal, Kwena Maphaka, Mohammad Nabi, Shams Mulani, Naman Dhir, Shivalik Sharma, Romario Shepherd, Arjun Tendulkar, Nuwan Thushara, Tilak Varma, Harvik Desai, Nehal Wadhera, Luke Wood.

Lucknow Super Giants: Quinton de Kock, KL Rahul (c & wk), Deepak Hooda, Ayush Badoni, Marcus Stoinis, Nicholas Pooran, Krunal Pandya, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohsin Khan, Shamar Joseph, Yash Thakur, Manimaran Siddharth, Prerak Mankad, Arshad Khan, Krishnappa Gowtham, Amit Mishra, Kyle Mayers, Ashton Turner, Matt Henry, Naveen-ul-Haq, Devdutt Padikkal, Yudhvir Singh Charak, Mayank Yadav and Arshin Kulkarni.

(With PTI Inputs)