KL Rahul Recalls Time He Smashed Fastest Half Century In IPL, Says 'Freedom' Allows Him to Score Freely (Watch Video)
KL Rahul was the fastest batter to score 50 in the IPL until recently Yashasvi Jaiswal broke the record in 2023. In a recent interview, Rahul recalled the memories of his innings for the Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings) and how he scored those runs.
KL Rahul is one of the technically gifted and explosive batters in the India National Cricket Team. The star smashed the fastest 50 in IPL back in 2018 during his time with the Punjab Kings. His 14-ball half-century record was later broken by Yashasvi Jaiswal who took 13 balls to reach the milestone in 2023. In a recent interview with Star Sports, KL Rahul reflected on his explosive inning against the talented Delhi Capitals bowling attack that had Mohammad Shami and Trent Boult. Rahul said, “I was excited. There were not of a lot expectations except for Kings XI Punjab who got me for a high price but apart from that I felt very confident in my T20 game.” Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024–25: Gautam Gambhir Hints KL Rahul Could Open if Rohit Sharma Misses First Test, Says ‘He Can Do the Job for Us’.
Adding to his point KL Rahul also mentioned that ‘freedom to play freely’ made an impact on his inning. He said, “There was no personal expectations, I didn’t feel like anyone expected anything of me. So that freedom to just go out and bat how I want to and not having the responsibility or no one telling me to take responsibility for the Team just allowed me to play that way.”
Look at KL Rahul's IPL and International Career
After that explosive inning for the Punjab Kings, KL Rahul was a household name. everyone liked his batting style and stoke plays. Rahul later became an integral part of the India national cricket team taking additional wicketkeeping responsibility. Here are KL Rahul’s stats in the IPL and for the Indian cricket team.'Happy Birthday Chetta!' KL Rahul Shares Special Birthday Wish for Sanju Samson As Wicketkeeper-Batter Turns 30 (See Pic).
KL Rahul's Stats
| Format | Innings | Runs | 50s | 100s | Avg | Highest Score |
| IPL | 123 | 4683 | 37 | 4 | 45.4 | 132 |
| T20I | 68 | 2265 | 22 | 2 | 37.8 | 110 |
| ODI | 72 | 2851 | 18 | 7 | 49.1 | 112 |
| Test | 91 | 2981 | 15 | 8 | 33.9 | 199 |
KL Rahul is currently in Australia and even played in India A vs Australia A Test match. Even though his performances were not overwhelming in that match, coach Gautam Gambhir is backing KL Rahul to play an important role in the upcoming India vs Australia Border Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 tournament.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 12, 2024 11:52 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).