Despite chasing a low target of 136 runs against Gujarat Titans at their home ground of Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow on 22 April, KL Rahul-led Lucknow Super Giants batters couldn’t finish the match and lost by 7 runs.

At one point of time, LSG needed 30 to win off the last six overs with eight wickets in hand and skipper KL Rahul already crossed 50, despite this, LSG failed to chase down a target of 136.

Beginning his batting, Rahul scored 30 runs in his first 12 balls, but then slowed down drastically and hit only 8 runs off the last 23 deliveries he faced. AFter the 13th over, LSG didn’t even scored a boundary.

When asked why his team lost, KL Rahul said post match, “I don’t know how it happened, but it has happened. I can’t put a finger on where it went wrong, but we lost 2 points today, this is cricket.”

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“We were well ahead in the game and I wasn’t really trying to bat deep, I still wanted to play my shots, take on the bowlers, but they bowled well in that 2-3 over period by Noor and Jayant. We perhaps should have taken a few more chances with wickets in hand,” he added.

Later, while criticising Rahul on Twitter, former India fast bowler Venkatesh Prasad did not mince his word. He wrote, “Bottling a run chase when 30 needed of 35 balls with 9 wickets in hand requires some baffling batting. Happened with Punjab in 2020 on few ocassions losing games they should have won easily. As brilliant as Guj were with ball & Hardik smart with his captaincy, brainless from Lko.”

It is to be known that Prasad has been highly critical of Rahul in the recent past.

Not only Prasad, even Virender Sehwag and Harbhajan Singh also reacted to the stunning result. Harbhajan even pulled he leg of his former India teammate Ashish Nehra, who heads the Gujarat Titans as coach.

Following this defeat, LSG missed the chance to go top of the IPL points table, sitting with eight points in seven games, while GT have gone to eight points in six games and are fourth on the table.

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