Lance Klusener, the assistant coach of the Lucknow Super Giants, has defended KL Rahul, saying that he has performed admirably in IPL 2024 season despite the team’s recent losses. Rahul has been a valuable captain, despite being passed over for the ICC T20 World Cup and receiving backlash from the team owner.
The Super Giants’ IPL 2024 campaign got off to a strong start as they were vying for a postseason spot. They lost four of their last five games, severely hindering their progress, therefore their aspirations were dashed. Following a humbling loss to Sunrisers Hyderabad, franchise owner Sajiv Goenka publically chastised the team throughout their poor run.
Lance Klusener did not address the Goenka-Rahul incident during a recent press conference prior to their game against the Mumbai Indians, but he did commend Rahul for his leadership and tenacity. Rahul has led the squad with distinction despite obstacles, winning the respect of his teammates in the process.
“Based on his results during the tournament, I believe he’s definitely a little bit frustrated. Several of the occasions we’ve lost wickets around him, in my opinion, he’s had to rebuild. We’ve stopped him from engaging in his normal activity. It is therefore simple to simply sit and conclude, “Oh, well, he hasn’t had a great tournament.” However, when you consider the situations he has had to bat in, his numbers are actually not that bad. Before his team’s game against the Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium on Friday, Lance Klusener had a pre-match news conference. “He’s a great cricketer and got the respect of the group,” NDTV cited him as saying.
When he has batted, he has frequently had to rebuild: Lance Klusener
When considering Rahul’s batting performances, Klusener underlined that Rahul frequently had to rebuild innings due to the lack of help from other hitters. Rahul’s figures are still decent in spite of this; he has scored 465 runs in 13 matches at an average of 35.7 and a strike rate of 136.36, with three fifties and a maximum score of 82. Rahul’s leadership qualities and his capacity to remain composed under duress were praised by Klusener. He noted that Rahul was occasionally frustrated, but he also emphasised the difficult conditions Rahul had to bat in.
Thus far, I believe his captaincy to be excellent. There is a great deal of respect for him among the group. As I mentioned earlier, I believe that if he looks back, he may feel a little miffed at how many runs he, I suppose, scored.
Also Read: “RR Should Worry About Middle Order: Varun Aaron on IPL 2024 Performance”
“But when you consider the situation, he has had to rebuild quite a bit while batting. Therefore, I don’t think the batting group surrounding him has done him any favours either,” Lance Klusener continued.