‘It was important to back him’ - KL Rahul on Glenn Maxwell’s indifferent run in IPL 2020

KL Rahul, the skipper of the Kings XI Punjab (IPL) has shown his full support for Glenn Maxwell, who hasn’t been firing in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). The Victorian was the most expensive buy in the previous IPL auction after the Mohali-based franchise roped him in at a whopping price of INR 10.75 crores.

In 10 matches, Maxwell has 90 runs at an average and strike-rate of 15 and 103.44 respectively. However, on Tuesday, October 20, against Shreyas Iyer’s Delhi Capitals (DC), he notched 32 runs off 24 balls and seemed to find his rhythm back. But then, after hitting three fours, he perished to Purple Cap holder Kagiso Rabada.

Glenn Maxwell has been batting well in the nets, says Rahul

After KXIP’s five-wicket victory at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Rahul highlighted Maxwell’s importance, saying that the latter adds to the team-balance.

“Glenn is a great team man. He has been batting well in the nets. It was important to back him. It was good to see him get time in the middle. Hopefully, he carries this good work into the coming games,” Rahul was quoted as saying to the reporters in the post-match press conference.

“Glenn has been batting well in the nets. He is a great team man and we know the balance he brings to the table,” he added.

As far as the game was concerned, KXIP managed to secure three wins on the trot. After losing the toss and being put in to field first, Rahul’s men restricted the opponents to an under-par 164 for five in 20 overs. For the Capitals, barring Shikhar Dhawan, who scored 106 runs with 12 fours and three sixes, none of their batters could make much of an impact.

In the run-chase, Rahul and Mayank Agarwal perished cheaply, but the other batters stepped up and delivered. Chris Gayle laid into Tushar Deshpande, scoring 29 runs off 13 balls with three fours and two sixes.  From there on, Nicholas Pooran’s 28-ball 53 put KXIP on the driver’s seat. Placed fifth in the points table, KXIP are next set to face Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on Saturday in Dubai.