IPL 2021: “It’s a tough one to swallow” – KL Rahul after PBKS' shocking defeat against RR

KL Rahul was at a loss for words after Punjab Kings’ (PBKS) shocking two-run defeat against Rajasthan Royals in match 32 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 in Dubai.

The PBKS captain stated that despite experiencing such moments before, the team hasn’t learned and repeated the same mistakes that have plagued their progress in the recent IPL editions.

Chasing 186, PBKS needed 10 runs from 15 balls with eight wickets in hand. A cautious approach saw them chase four off the final over. They managed just one run and lost the wickets of Nicholas Pooran and Deepak Hooda to lose the game by two runs.

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“It’s a tough one to swallow. We have been a team that has experienced games like these before. We need to see how we can handle pressure better. Trying to finish in the 18th over, sometimes you go too hard and lose your way and let the opponents in. Tough one to swallow that you haven’t learnt from your previous mistakes,” said KL Rahul in the post-match presentation ceremony.

KL Rahul focuses on positives after RR shock PBKS in IPL 2021

Despite the heartbreaking defeat, a disappointed KL Rahul focused on the positives and hoped PBKS would return stronger and win their remaining five games to secure a IPL playoff spot.

“We will now try to come back stronger and win the next five games. We pulled things back quite nicely with the ball, kept taking wickets, which is very crucial in this format. We bowled decent lengths in the powerplay. Getting runs for me, Mayank, and even Aiden in his first IPL game was important,” KL Rahul added.

KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal shared a 120-run stand going at more than 10 an over. Aiden Markram, who made his IPL debut, was unbeaten on 26 off 20 balls. Earlier, PBKS restricted RR to 185 after they were 167 for five in 17 overs. It was Arshdeep Singh’s five-for that had brought them back to the contest.

Tied with 380 runs at the top of the batters list in IPL 2021 with Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul now dons the Orange Cap. Struggling at the seventh spot, PBKS next play Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on Saturday.