Delhi Capitals recently suffered a 47-run defeat against Sunrisers Hyderabad in their IPL 2026 match on Tuesday at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium. Batting first, SRH posted a mammoth total of 242/2 in their allotted 20 overs, with opener Abhishek Sharma smashing 135 off 68 deliveries.
In reply, DC could manage only 195/9 despite good efforts from Nitish Rana and Sameer Rizvi. However, DC opener and wicketkeeper KL Rahul has come under the scanner for his sluggish knock of 37 off 23 balls, which included just one boundary and three sixes, and failed to provide the momentum required in the powerplay as well. And, former India opener Aakash Chopra was critical of Rahul’s approach, questioning his intent as well.
“I think the question needs to be asked. He faced 23 balls for the 37 runs he scored, but how many attacking shots did he actually play? In my humble opinion, when you’re chasing a 240-plus total and fail to capitalise on the powerplay, there’s a 99.5 percent chance you’re going to lose the match. It’s a mountain to climb anyway, but the intent felt missing. I didn’t feel they gave it everything they had while chasing such a massive total,” Chopra said on his YouTube channel.
KL Rahul played a sluggish knock
“He may have been carrying a niggle; it did seem like that. But once again, this is the same mistake LSG made the other day. If you don’t go all out and instead adopt a conservative approach while chasing such totals, you’re going to lose anyway. The question then is-did you give your best? Not enough, in my opinion,” he again added.
He also raised concerns about KL Rahul’s wicketkeeping, sharing a crucial error behind the stumps that gave Abhishek Sharma a lifeline as well.
“KL Rahul does keep wickets for India in the ODI setup as well, but let’s be very honest-he is a batter who keeps wickets, not the other way around. Most wicketkeepers are keepers first and then contribute with the bat. Mistakes can happen to anyone, but when it’s KL Rahul, you do start questioning the overall value. If, as a keeper, you miss chances, it sometimes nullifies whatever contribution you make with the bat,” he concluded.
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