KL Rahul Was a Massive Miss For LSG: Tom Moody

image-li2xxvcpKL Rahul in action for LSG [AP Photos]

Lucknow Super Giants suffered a massive 81-run defeat at the hands of the Mumbai Indians on Wednesday, May 24th, in the Eliminator match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk. 

It was a woeful performance by Lucknow Super Giants as their batting order tumbled like a deck of cards, stumbling to a meagre 101 runs in 16.3 overs while chasing 183. 

Meanwhile, the former Australian cricketer, Tom Moody, feels that the LSG batting unit lacked the stability provided by KL Rahul at the top of the order.

Notably, Rahul's season came to an abrupt halt after suffering a serious injury while fielding against the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in Lucknow. Later, the LSG captain was ruled out for the remainder of the season. 

Expressing his thoughts on LSG’s campaign, Tom Moody said that making it to the playoffs in two consecutive seasons is a big achievement in itself. 

However, Moody also acknowledged the absence of their regular captain KL Rahul this season, stating that his contribution would have been instrumental for the team.

Here’s what Tom Moody said to ESPN Cricinfo:

"I think KL Rahul was a massive miss for LSG. This is the second time they have reached the playoffs so that in itself is a great achievement for a new team. I think even though at the point that KL Rahul injured himself, you can just about guarantee that he would have scored three if not more half-centuries in the rest of the games and that was missing."


"KL Rahul in that batting lineup is a different story, it is a completely different look. I felt that he was a big loss, just around the stability that he provides as a top-order player.” 

Notably, in the absence of Rahul, the Super Giants management explored various options such as Karan Sharma, Manan Vohra, and Deepak Hooda, but none could deliver the much-needed stability.

Meanwhile, for the unversed, KL Rahul underwent surgery earlier this month, which has also ruled him out of the World Test Championship (WTC) final, where he was supposed to open the batting for India alongside captain Rohit Sharma.