Lucknow Super Giants coach Justin Langer has backed skipper KL Rahul and is not concerned about his strike-rate in T20 cricket. He expressed that KL Rahul is an outstanding player, and the team is blessed to have him as a leader in the 2024 Indian Premier League season.
Many have raised concerns over KL Rahul’s strike rate in T20 cricket. The veteran cricketer has an average of 45.14 in the last three seasons of the Indian Premier League. However, his strike rate of 127.93 is among the lowest in the top 15 leading run-scoring openers list. Lucknow Super Giants coach Justin Langer backed KL Rahul and heaped praise on the cricketer. He said at a pre-match press conference,
“I am not going to lose one second’s sleep over KL Rahul. He is a beautiful player, he is an outstanding player. There is a reason he has had so much success for India. I am blessed to have him in the team, not only as an opening batter or wicketkeeper but as a captain. He is so calm, he is a wonderful person.”
“People talk to me about those things, but I am not losing a second’s sleep over KL Rahul. I feel blessed to have him in the team, he’s that good a player,” added Justin Langer.
KL Rahul slammed a half-century in Lucknow Super Giants’ opening match of the 2024 Indian Premier League. He scored 58 runs off 44 deliveries, with four boundaries and two sixes. Overall, KL Rahul has scored 4221 runs at an average of 46.9, and a strike rate of 134.38.
Justin Langers opens up on Lucknow Super Giants’ playing XI combination
The Lucknow Super Giants coach Justin Langer asserted that they will stick to their playing XI combination from their opening match against the Rajasthan Royals. He expressed that the overseas quartet features, Naveen-ul-Haq, Quinton de Kock, Nicholas Pooran, and Marcus Stoinis. Justin Langer said,
“We’ll stick to our plan of playing three overseas batsmen and one overseas bowler. Naveen-ul-Haq bowled well in the first game, and we expect another strong performance from him tomorrow. So, for the match against Punjab, we’ll field three overseas batsmen — Quinton de Kock, Nicholas Pooran, and Marcus Stoinis — and Naveen as our specialist overseas bowler.”
The Lucknow Super Giants will play against the Punjab Kings on Saturday, March 30 at their home ground in Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow.
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