All eyes will be on KL Rahul when the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League begins in the UAE on September 19. He will be leading Kings XI Punjab for the first time and a lot of responsibilities will be on his shoulders. Former India international Gautam Gambhir also wants Rahul to perform in IPL 2020.
Ever since he joined Kings XI Punjab, Rahul’s graph has grown up in a jiffy. He was among the top run-getters in the last two seasons of the cash-rich league. He averaged over 50 in the last two seasons with 659 and 593 runs in IPL 2018 and 2019 respectively.
KL Rahul should perform in IPL 2020 – Gautam Gambhir
The stylish batsman from Karnataka will be aiming to keep up his swashbuckling form in the coming season as well. Former India cricketer Gautam Gambhir also wants KL Rahul to perform in IPL 2020. A good tournament will give the wicket-keeper batsman boost his chances in the national side for limited-overs.
“I would want to genuinely watch what KL Rahul does in this IPL,” Gautam Gambhir said on Star Sports Connected.
“Because according to me KL Rahul is a fantastic T20 cricketer, probably not Test cricket, but definitely T20 and white-ball cricketer,” he added.
Recently, KL Rahul replaced Rishabh Pant as the first-choice wicket-keeper in the ODIs and T20Is. After MS Dhoni took a sabbatical, Pant became the prime option to replace him. However, he failed to do justice to selection throwing away his wicket on most occasions.
And now with Dhoni finally announcing his international retirement on August 15, the position remains completely vacant. KL Rahul will be eyeing to cement the berth in the coming months.
However, Rahul’s main aim will be the upcoming IPL as Kings XI Punjab continue to chase their maiden trophy. They have begun their training and will hope to bring home the title.