Karnataka star KL Rahul was cheered on by his father-in-law Suniel Shetty and brother-in-law Ahan as he reached a century on Day 1 (Sunday, February 15) of the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy semifinal against Uttarakhand at Lucknow’s Ekana Cricket Stadium.
Opening the innings, Rahul was in excellent touch, bringing up his fifty with a boundary in the 28th over. The 33-year-old went on to notch his second consecutive hundred, reaching his century off 153 balls in the 52nd over with a single off Avneesh Sudha towards long-leg.
Suniel and Ahan gave him a standing ovation to applaud the brilliant knock. You can watch the video here:
Back-to-back 💯s
🎥 Watch the moment KL Rahul brought up his 2️⃣5️⃣th First Class century!
Updates ▶️ https://t.co/SztwjvwUiI@IDFCFIRSTBank | @klrahul pic.twitter.com/QS963JMU0e
— BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) February 15, 2026
This milestone was KL Rahul’s 25th century in first-class cricket. Before this match, the Karnataka batsman had featured in 118 first-class games, amassing 8,757 runs in 206 innings at an average of 44.45, which included 24 centuries and 41 half-centuries, with a career-best score of 337.
KL Rahul And Skipper Devdutt Padikkal’s Centuries Give Karnataka The Upper Hand
Uttarakhand skipper Kunal Chandela won the toss and opted to field first. Aditya Rawat struck early, removing Mayank Agarwal for just five runs off 32 balls in the ninth over. Coming in at No. 3, captain Devdutt Padikkal partnered KL Rahul to steady the innings, taking Karnataka to 133/1 at lunch after 32 overs.
The pair continued their impressive partnership in the second session, with Rahul reaching his century off 153 balls and Padikkal notching up his hundred with a six off 144 balls. Karnataka went into tea in a dominant position at 263/1 after 62 overs.
At the latest update, they were 275/1 after 65 overs, with Rahul unbeaten on 127 and Padikkal on 120. In the other semifinal, Bengal faced Jammu & Kashmir. After being asked to bat, Bengal were 199/4 after 62 overs, with Sudip Gharami on 104 and Shahbaz Ahmed on 26 at the crease.
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