KL Rahul gets out for 26 in must-win Ranji Trophy match for Karnataka

KL Rahul’s form in red-ball cricket doesn’t seem to be getting better. After an average tour of Australia for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25, where he scored 276 runs at an average of 30.66, Rahul missed the sixth round match of Karnataka but returned for the last round, which is a must-win for the state side. 

Rahul, coming in to bat at number three against Haryana, failed to convert the start he got, getting out for 26 off 37 balls. Anshul Kamboj, the new recruit in the Mumbai Indians set-up got Rahul’s wicket, who was caught by Rohit Sharma. 

This is a must-win game for Karnataka who have 19 points in their kitty and need an outright win to get the same number of points as Haryana (25) and secure a place in the last eight.

Rahul, who did not play in the last round due to some injury concerns, replaced Abhinav Manohar in the side that won by an innings and 207 runs against Punjab. Karnataka made three changes- bringing in Rahul, Hardik Raj and Vidwath Kaverappa for Manohar, Shreyas Gopal and Abhilash Shetty.  

At the time of writing this, despite the loss of Rahul’s wicket, Karnataka had reached 177/3, skipper Mayank Agarwal leading the charge with his 91, before getting out.