'I don't buy it' - Ravi Shastri dismisses KL Rahul's assessment of Jaipur pitch following sluggish innings against RR

Lucknow Super Giants saw off league leaders Rajasthan Royals in a low-scoring affair in Jaipur on Wednesday, April 19. Despite their victory, LSG skipper KL Rahul has come under criticism due to his laboured innings at the top of the order against the home side. Former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri dismissed the LSG skipper's reasoning behind his low strike rate against the Royals.

KL Rahul's side batted first in the contest and were off to a decent start, thanks to a steady opening stand between the skipper and Kyle Mayers. They were 79 for no loss after the ten-over mark but failed to capitalize on their start, managing just 75 runs in their next ten overs. While the LSG skipper cited the slow nature of the pitch as the reason for his measured approach at the crease, former Indian cricketer Ravi Shastri was not having any of it.

"Absolutely (needs to get the strike up). All that talk about 160, I don't buy it. When you have two chances, if you convert that 39 to 60 or 70, 160 becomes 175. You need someone in the top 3 to carry on and play that long innings," Ravi Shastri told Star Sports.

Plenty to learn from this game for both sides: Shastri

Meanwhile, Rajasthan Royals, who were playing at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium for the first time in four years, went down the same path as their opponents as none of the top-order batters kicked on in the latter part of the chase. Shastri felt that if any of Rajasthan's top three batters had stayed at the crease, the outcome of the game would've been different. The cricketer-turned-expert reckoned it is still early in the tournament and both teams will learn from their mistakes in the game.

"If the Rajasthan Royals team had done that. They would have won this game. Plenty to learn from this game for both sides on how to approach and taking chances at the right time. It's still early days in the tournament. Rajasthan is No. 1 and Lucknow is No. 2 and they will learn a lot from this," he added.