IPL 2023: Captaincy has never plagued him, he has led from the front - Jonty Rhodes backs India star

Add as a preferred source on Google

IPL 2023: Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) fielding coach Jonty Rhodes has heaped rich praises on KL Rahul and said that unlike a few other great batters, the 30-year-old hasn't succumbed to the pressure of captaining the team. The statement from Rhodes came after Rahul's 56-ball 74 against Punjab Kings (PBKS).

The LSG skipper roared back to form with the knock which saw him score eight boundaries and a six. The first four innings of the IPL 2023 saw him score 8, 20, 35 and 18. The right-hander had entered the series on the back of a poor form in international cricket as well.

“The captain is someone who likes to lead from the front. He has always been a successful, dominating batter in all the IPLs. Captaincy isn’t something that’s ever plagued him.

“Many great batters when given captaincy don’t quite handle it. He’s led from the front and I think it’s great to see that,” Rhodes said at the post-match conference.

“When the captain is scoring runs, the way that he plays he lays a really good platform for others to play around them.

“We always knew that he was just one knock away. He’s been batting in the nets superbly. He’s not the kind of player anybody worries about because we always know it’s literally one innings away," he added.

KL Rahul has scored over 600 runs in four of the last five IPL seasons. In IPL 2019 he scored 593 runs. Rahul would be hoping to carry his good run in the ongoing sixteenth edition of the IPL as well.

LSG play their next match against Rajasthan Royals (RR) on Wednesday, April 19.