KL Rahul’s return to the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) for the Indian Premier League (IPL) opener against Rajasthan Royals (RR) on March 24 will be a crucial test of his form and fitness. Rahul missed the last four Tests against England due to a quadriceps injury and was out for four months last year after undergoing thigh surgery.
As LSG captain, Rahul will aim to lead the team to a strong start, especially after guiding them to successive playoffs in the first two seasons. He is likely to play purely as a batter, at least initially, but the additional burden of keeping could strengthen his chances of making the T20 World Cup squad.
RR’s Sanju Samson, Rahul’s opposite number on March 24, is also a candidate for the wicket-keepers’ role in the India squad for the ICC event. Samson will be keen to find his rhythm right from the start. RR came tantalizingly close to clinching a second title before Gujarat Titans broke their heart in the final in 2022.
Both teams face tough decisions in selecting their best XI. RR boasts a solid batting line-up, including in-form Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jos Buttler, and skipper Samson. They also have a finisher in Dhruv Jurel, who made an impressive India debut in the recent five-match Test series against England. Samson may consider strengthening the middle-order by bringing in West Indies’ Rovman Powell to join countryman Shimron Hetmyer.
LSG, on the other hand, will rely on Quinton de Kock, Marcus Stonis, and Nicholas Pooran to do the bulk of the scoring alongside skipper Rahul. The team will have to contend with spin wizards Ravichandran Ashwin and Yuzvendra Chahal, who can run through any batting line-up on a given day.
Lucknow also has a shrewd customer in leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi, who will be eager to put up a good show to put himself in line for a place in the T20 World Cup squad. Veteran leg-break bowler Amit Mishra is also a threat. However, their pace battery looks dim after foreign recruits Mark Wood and David Willey were ruled out and Indian talents Mayank Yadav and Mohsin Khan are plagued by fitness issues.
The inexperience of pacer Yash Thakur and lack of game time for Shivam Mavi mean LSG might hand the responsibility to experienced Naveen ul Haq and West Indies sensation Shamar Joseph. It will be interesting to see how Justin Langer goes about his business in his first IPL assignment as coach of LSG.
