KL Rahul notched up 112 not out but Delhi Capitals lost the match.
Former Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) head coach Tom Moody has taken a subtle dig at the critics of the Delhi Capitals (DC) batter KL Rahul. The wicketkeeper-batter notched up a sublime century last night against the Gujarat Titans (GT) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025.
However, the talks regarding Rahul’s strike rate resurfaced in the cricketing world after GT openers Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan clinched away the match with an unbeaten 205-run partnership.
The former Australian player opined that viewers often don’t acknowledge Rahul’s efforts. He also criticised the other DC batters, including skipper Axar Patel, who played with a below-160 strike rate instead of backing Rahul’s knock with a quickfire cameo from the other end.
“I always find the criticism around KL Rahul quite extraordinary. I think he’s a lot better player than a lot of people give him credit for. And the way I look at this innings, I think it’s an outstanding innings. The way I look at this and I look at the batting card, what’s let them down and not reaching that 220 is the other batters that were in only struck at 150. On a [batting-friendly] surface, you want [to] impact,” said Moody in an ESPN Cricinfo show.
Notably, the DC management sent Rahul to his usual opening spot for the first time in this IPL 2025. He has played at No.4 in almost all of their matches so far. However, after overcoming a struggling powerplay, the 33-year-old played a smashing 65-ball knock to notch up 112 not out. This blistering ton alongside Tristan Stubbs’ 10-ball-21 helped DC reach 199 after 20 overs.
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Moody also emphasised their missed chance to register a 200-plus total on the scoreboard. DC were almost 20 runs short on the wicket at the Arun Jaitley stadium last night.
“The team had the opportunity to get it to 220. The team didn’t do that. This is not an individual sport. This is a team sport. And that’s where the communication around who’s coming in and the communication when you’re out there: ‘Okay, we need to target two boundaries at the beginning of this over; let’s make this a big over’, that type of conversations. To me, they just lay idle a little bit in that middle [period],” he stressed.
On the other hand, GT skipper Gill, alongside his opening partner Sudharsan, chased the target easily with an over remaining. With this victory, the Titans regained the top spot in the IPL 2025 points table and qualified for the playoffs.
The Capitals’ chances for qualifying in the IPL 2025 playoffs have taken a hit after their 10-wicket thrashing loss against GT. Axar and Co. continue to sit fifth in the points table, with six wins in 12 matches.
Last night’s victory also ensured the qualification of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Punjab Kings (PBKS). DC will have to win both of their remaining matches against the Mumbai Indians (MI) and PBKS to keep their playoff hopes alive.
They will go head-to-head with the five-time IPL champions MI at the Wankhede Stadium on May 21.
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