KL Rahul gives special mention to youth of PBKS, says 'We are coming together as a team'

Punjab Kings skipper KL Rahul has shown faith in his young talent saying that the players are coming together as a team and they are in no hurry to get too ahead of themselves after their impressive nine-wicket win against the defending champions Mumbai Indians in their IPL 2021 clash at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Friday.

At the same time, Rahul also revealed his mindset once he is aware of the target that needs to be chased down.

'We are coming together as a team': KL Rahul

"We don't want to get too ahead of ourselves. Slowly we are coming together as a team. We are still a young team. Every year we keep bringing in newer guys. It's important to be patient. The guys we have backed and given opportunities are slowly coming through. Hooda has been playing really well, Shahrukh got an opportunity and he's been batting really well, Bishnoi came in this game and the way he bowled was brilliant. Fingers crossed, hopefully, we can keep climbing and keep getting two points every game", said KL Rahul during the post-match interview.

"When I know what target I am chasing, it gets slightly easier to pace the innings. Really happy with the way I finished the game and that's the most important thing", he added.

PBKS get back to winning ways

MI were restricted to 131/6 from their 20 overs after being asked to bat first on a sluggish wicket as skipper Rohit Sharma top-scored with a 52-ball 63 at a strike rate of 121.15 that included five boundaries and a couple of maximums and added 79 runs for the third-wicket stand with elegant number three batsman Suryakumar Yadav (33). 

At one stage it appeared as if the title-holders would succeed in posting a stiff total but completely lost the plot at the backend of their innings as they suffered a middle-order collapse.

In reply, the 2014 finalists got off to a good start as captain KL Rahul, and, Mayank Agarwal added 53 runs for the opening stand before the latter's dismissal. Rahul led from the front and successfully anchored Punjab's run chase by taking the MI bowlers to the cleaners at regular intervals and helped his team get over the line with 14 balls to spare. The Karnataka cricketer was adjudged the Man of the Match for his stellar knock of a 52-ball unbeaten 60 at a strike rate of 115.38 including three boundaries and three maximums. 

By the virtue of this win, PBKS registered their second win of IPL 2021. Prior to this contest, the KL Rahul-led side had lost their previous three games. 

(Image Courtesy: @PunjabKingsIPL/Twitter)