It looked like KL Rahul had never been absent. It didn’t seem like he was making a comeback to professional cricket for the first time since May 1st, and that he’d been out of action for over four months for an injury layoff.
A century to remember for a long, long time for the fans as KL Rahul put on a sizzling show against none other than India’s arch-rivals Pakistan in Colombo in the Super 4 round match in Asia Cup 2023.
And to think, Rahul wasn’t selected in India’s XI, but Shreyas Iyer suffered back spasms just minutes before the toss and that paved the way for him to take Iyer’s place at number 4.
On Sunday, captain Rohit Sharma (56 off 49) and Shubman Gill (58 off 52) put on a 121-run opening stand, but both got out in succession. Virat Kohli and KL Rahul first steadied the ship, avoiding any more wicket to fall, and than both teed off straightaway when play resumed on Monday.
Rahul was, in particular, aggressive against the Pakistani spinners – leg-spinner Shadab Khan and part-time off-spinner Iftikhar Ahmed, who was called upon to bowl as Haris Rauf had got injured yesterday and didn’t take the field today.
Rahul brought up his half-century in 60 balls and his century in 100 balls. He scored 111* runs off 106 balls with the help of 12 fours and 2 sixes. At the other end, Kohli played like Kohli, smoothly building his innings before exploding toward the end and finishing with 122* in 94 balls. Virat Kohli and KL Rahul forged a huge partnership of 233* runs in 194 balls, taking India’s total to 356/2.
Suniel Shetty writes emotional post for Son-in-law KL Rahul
Rahul’s father-in-law Suniel Shetty wrote an emotional post for his son-in-law’s superb comeback. Shetty, a Bollywood megastar, had witnessed Rahul’s struggles in his recovery closely and thus this post came from the depths of his heart.
“A sublime performance – A triumphant return. Gratitude Overflows. Grateful to the almighty for empowering all efforts,” Suniel Shetty tweeted.
A sublime performance – A triumphant return. Gratitude Overflows.
Grateful to the almighty for empowering all efforts.
🤞🙏🖤 pic.twitter.com/jZ5HHG8DdM— Suniel Shetty (@SunielVShetty) September 11, 2023
