KL Rahul made 18 runs in 33 balls before his dismissal by Lahiru Kumara.
Former India batter Ajay Jadeja showed surprise at the way KL Rahul was dismissed by Lahiru Kumara in India’s first innings of the ongoing second Test against Sri Lanka in Colombo on August 23. Rahul was caught behind for a 33-ball 18 while attempting a cut shot off Lahiru Kumara's bowling on Day 1.
Everyone was taken aback, according to Ajay Jadeja, because the opening doesn't play such ostentatious strokes. He did, however, believe that the choice of shot was correct. He emphasized that despite Rahul's out-of-character shot, he hadn't selected the incorrect ball to cut.
"He was leaving balls that were closer to him, and the lengths were fuller. When the ball is swinging, you need to attack the bowler somewhere or the other. When you see it, you feel that it was wider than those balls, so why did he touch it? But you need the ball far only for the cut shot.
He got beaten either by pace or bounce. When the ball is seaming or swinging, you go less toward the drive and more to the cut or pull. Since he has the habit of leaving and waiting, that's why everyone is feeling that one doesn't expect that from him, but I don't agree that the ball wasn't there to play the cut shot," Jadeja said on Sony Sports.
Ajay Jadeja emphasized that when batters who play the cut witness such deliveries, they begin to drool. He went on to suggest that if Virender Sehwag saw the ball, he would declare it a four.
Former India seamer Venkatesh Prasad expressed his opinion that KL Rahul became overly aggressive too early in the game during the same conversation.
"It's very unlike KL Rahul. He had hit a four in that over with a pull shot. Probably he got carried away with that confidence. He generally does not play such shots. It was extremely wide. These were early days in the Test match. It was the very first innings, and he had made 18 runs off 33 balls.
He was pretty much set, and there was true bounce on the pitch. It's a great track to bat on. Generally, he plays cautiously and slowly. He is somebody who occupies the crease," Prasad said.
Devdutt Padikkal made 117, while Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant made fifties, and Dhruv Jurel is batting on 95* as India has made 475/8 in the first innings on day two at the time of writing this piece.