IPL 2023: KL Rahul is far better than Sanju Samson, Virender Sehwag backs batter to continue form

By India Today Sports Desk: Rajasthan Royals are set to face Lucknow Super Giants on Wednesday, 19 April in a top of the table clash in the Indian Premier League. Set to be played at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur, this game will be a clash between Sanju Samson, and KL Rahul two very promising Indian stars who don’t seem to fulfill their potential in the recent times with the Indian cricket team. While Rahul is an established batter with the India side, his recent form has plummeted well below average, especially while playing in the ICC tournaments. Rahul has been criticised for his approach in the T20Is, while his ODI and Test exploits remain fairly decent.

IPL 2023: Full Coverage | Points Table

Samson on the other hand has done well in the ODIs in his brief stint with the Indian side, but has not played well in the T20 format of the competition. Speaking ahead of the game, Virender Sehwag has backed KL Rahul and said that Rahul is a far better player for India in comparison to Sanju Samson.

“If you talk about establishing yourself in the Indian team, I believe KL Rahul is far better than Sanju Samson. He has played Test matches and scored hundreds in many countries. He has performed well in ODIs, both as an opener and in the middle order, and has also scored runs in T20 cricket,” Sehwag said ahead of the match in a Cricbuzz show.

Rajasthan are currently leading the table with 8 points, but will match LSG if they lose their game today at Jaipur. LSG will then be equal with Rajasthan, and the NRR will decide who leads the table between the two teams. Sehwag said that Rajasthan should be wary of Rahul’s batting, since they do not have any elite pacers barring Trent Boult.

“KL Rahul is back in form. He scored runs in the previous match. Yes, his strike rate may not have met people’s expectations, but his form is a great sign. Rajasthan doesn’t have any other fast bowler apart from Trent Boult who has express pace or is very dangerous. They do have dangerous spinners, but if KL Rahul bats for long, he will surely take them apart,” concluded Sehwag.