IPL 2021: KL Rahul reveals things that 'kill' him as a captain after Punjab Kings beat Kolkata Knight Riders
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The win has boosted Punjab Kings chances of making it to the play-offs of the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League
After Punjab Kings registered a much-needed victory over Kolkata Knight Riders by five wickets during IPL 2021 on Friday (October 1) at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, KL Rahul revealed things that "kill him" as captain, reflecting on the decision to leave out spinner Harpreet Brar who has done well for the team.
During the post-match presentation, Rahul said, "These are things that kill me as a captain. Don't want to leave out the Indian boys. With a heavy heart had to leave Harpreet out. Had to see what would be our best XI with Chris leaving the bubble."
Punjab Kings batter Shahrukh Khan produced a crucial nine-ball 22-run knock and finished the match with a six as the team chased the 166-run target with three balls to spare.
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"Shahrukh has been batting brilliantly in the nets. Saw how strong he is in the first phase. He's asking a lot of questions and wanting to finish games," the wicket-keeper batter added.
Rahul scored 67 runs off 55 balls and shared a 70-run stand with fellow opener Mayank Agarwal (40). The win has boosted Punjab Kings chances of making it to the play-offs of the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League.
Earlier, left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh (3/32), who is a top performer for Punjab this season, delivered again by cleaning up Shubhman Gill (7). He also dismissed Dinesh Karthik and Nitish Rana.
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A look at the Points Table after Match 45 of #VIVOIPL.
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) October 1, 2021
Which two teams do you reckon will join #CSK and #DelhiCapitals out there? pic.twitter.com/AuxGtgMXtk
WHAT A WIN! 👏 👏
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) October 1, 2021
Yet another nail-biter as @PunjabKingsIPL pull off a 5 wicket win over #KKR in Dubai. 👍 👍 #VIVOIPL #KKRvPBKS
Scorecard 👉 https://t.co/lUTQhNzjsM pic.twitter.com/3J2N1X6a4G
KL Rahul said, "Often times we've put too much pressure on ourselves. Everybody knows we are a far better team. Putting too much pressure on ourselves is not helping. Message has been to give our best. Every game we've fought till the end."
Punjab's win takes them to fifth, level on 10 points with fourth-placed KKR and Mumbai Indians in sixth. The top four teams will go through to the play-offs.