When Chris Gayle is going like that try not to be a hero, says KL Rahul

The opening batsman of the Kings XI Punjab, KL Rahul voiced his opinion about teammate Chris Gayle saying that the “Universe Boss” should be allowed to keep strike when at his best. Playing their first home game, the Mohali-based franchise was chasing a target of 177 against the Mumbai Indians on Saturday.

The Ravichandran Ashwin-led side started off slow, managing just 37 runs at the end of the powerplay. But from then on, Chris Gayle took the took charge, hitting the big shots as usual whereas his partner KL Rahul struggled to put bat to ball. The 26-year-old Indian batsman took to defence in the slow start. However, thanks to Gayle, the team finally emerged victorious with an eight-wicket win over Mumbai Indians in Mohali on March 30.

Gayle went on an all-out before getting dismissed at 40 (off 24) in the eighth over after which Mayank Agarwal– coming out at No. 3- took charge and kept the asking rate was under check  Even as Agarwal was placing the ball all over the PCA Stadium, Rahul was happy enough to rotate the strike and hang around as a consolidating partner.

Took my time and played second fiddle to Chris Gayle, says KL Rahul

Rahul emphasized on the fact that he wanted to spend time in the middle following two poor performances. “I didn’t walk into this game with a lot of runs or time in the, middle. In both the games (vs RR and KKR), I got out pretty early. It was a conscious effort from my side to spend some time in the middle,” the opener said after the game.

“I wasn’t hitting the ball well to start off with the but the way Chris (Gayle) and Mayank (Agarwal) batted gave me time in the middle. I knew switching to fifth gear would be easy if I spent a little time in the middle. I had been hitting the ball well in the nets as well so I am happy it came off.”

“I just wanted to take my time and when Chris is going like that, you just have to keep feeding him the strike and not try to be a hero. I have learnt that with experience.. played for KXIP last year and I had the same role where I had to to bat 20 over. The way Mayank batted also gave me a time,” the KXIP opener concluded.

Get the latest Cricket News and updates from the Indian Premier League, Match Predictions, Fantasy Cricket Tips and lots more on CricTracker.com.