Watch: KL Rahul's ridiculous semi-helicopter shot has Hazlewood shocked
KL Rahul showcased his brilliance with an unbelievable hit off Josh Hazlewood during the first T20I between India and Australia in Mohali on Tuesday.
Being put in to bat, skipper Rohit Sharma and Rahul could manage just two singles and a brace in the first over from Hazlewood, before Rohit took Pat Cummins for a six and four in the next over.
Rahul then just nonchalantly unleashed a semi-helicopter off Hazlewood off the first ball of the third, to send the ball sailing into the stands. The right-hander just walked across, and took a step down, flicking a length ball off the front foot with utter disdain, much to the Hazlewoodโs amazement.
โA shot to remember,โ Harsha Bhogle would later quip on air. โA magic shot,โ echoed Matthew Hayden.
Watch: KL Rahul's ridiculous semi-helicopter shot has Hazlewood shocked
Whip(K)lash Rahul! ๐ ๐
โ BCCI (@BCCI) September 20, 2022
How about that for a SIX! ๐ ๐
Follow the match ๐ https://t.co/ZYG17eC71l #TeamIndia | @klrahul
Donโt miss the LIVE coverage of the #INDvAUS match on @StarSportsIndia pic.twitter.com/UwwUDArHiP
โ Yoloapp (@Yoloapp2) September 20, 2022
Virat Kohli, who struck his maiden T20I hundred in his last outing - against Afghanistan in Dubai at the Asia Cup - was dismissed by Nathan Ellis after a seven-ball struggle for 2. India were 46/2 from six overs at the time of writing, with Rahul joined by Suryakumar Yadav.
India have Harshal Patel back in their XI, who had missed the recent Asia Cup 2022 in the UAE with a rib injury. Jasprit Bumrah, meanwhile, missed out and is expected to be back for the second and the third T20I, as confirmed by Rohit at the toss.
"It is an opportunity to test ourselves," Rohit said. "Every game is a big game to learn. We got to learn so much in the last six-eight months on how to win games. This series will be no different for us to express ourselves. Looking at what happened in the Asia Cup, we had a chance to reflect on where we went wrong. This gives us an opportunity to correct ourselves as a group. Nothing changes in terms of our approach."
All-rounder Tim David, who played the first 12 T20Is of his career for Singapore, his country of birth, was handed his maiden T20I cap for Australia.