Former India cricketer and Chennai Super Kings legend Suresh Raina reckons that amazing stroke play coming from the bat of Lucknow Super Giants captain KL Rahul proves that he is in the best phase of his career. Rahul has been in a consistent run of form in IPL 2022, making 451 runs in 10 matches at an average of 56.38 and strike-rate of 145.01.

He also has two centuries against Mumbai Indians and as many half-centuries. With Lucknow facing Kolkata Knight Riders at the MCA Stadium in Pune on Saturday, KL Rahul now needs just 49 more runs to reach the 500-run mark for the fifth consecutive season of IPL, making him one of the most consistent batters of the tournament in recent times.

“KL (Rahul) is in the best mindset right now, he’s batting with a very positive mindset. He is playing some amazing shots which proves that he is in the best phase of his career. He is trying a few new things as well this season (in his batting). He plays with the mind of the bowlers and traps them. He forces the bowlers to bowl in the areas which are his strong zones and constructs his innings accordingly. It is really commendable to see him bat like this,” said Raina on Cricket Live show on Star Sports.

Adding into Raina’s views, former India cricketer Mohammed Kaif pointed out that although Rahul is capable of playing aggressive shots from the start of his innings, he’s curbing his instincts at the same time to ensure he plays long and impactful knocks for Lucknow in IPL 2022.

“KL Rahul is trying to play captaincy innings this year. He can be aggressive from the word go and he’s capable of starting his innings with a six but he is curbing his instincts in order to play long and impactful knocks.”

“He has all the shots in his arsenal, he can play sweep shots, he can pull shots, and he plays those cut shots brilliantly but the reason why he’s taking his time into the middle is to prolong his innings. He can take risks as there are many good batsmen in his team but he’s looking to bat with the responsibility and lead his side from the front.”

Ex-India all-rounder Irfan Pathan claimed Rahul is one of the most valuable batsmen in the country as he has the ability to play at various positions and in different modes, domestically as well as internationally.

“KL is a street-smart batsman. He is capable of batting at any position, he has done that in India colours and one can do that with such ease only if he’s talented. He is one of the most valuable Indian batters because he has the ability to play in different modes.”

(Inputs from IANS)