During their IPL 2023 match against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) on Monday, May 1, the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) suffered a significant setback when captain KL Rahul suffered an injury and was forced to leave the field. Rahul pulled up as he dived near the boundary ropes in the second over of RCB’s innings and was clearly struggling as he clutched his right thigh.
Krunal Pandya took over as captain and Rahul batted at number one, so he didn’t play any more. 11 as LSG encounter an unlikely circumstance. As RCB’s bowlers delivered, the skipper was unable to secure victory, but it is very likely that Rahul will not play for the Super Giants. They will next play the Chennai Super Lords (CSK) at home on Wednesday, May 3, preceding making a beeline for Ahmedabad to confront the Gujarat Titans (GT) on Sunday, May 7.
There has been no official announcement from the LSG camp regarding the severity of the injury. However, if Rahul is ruled out for the following game, the team will have to look into other options to fill his spot in the starting lineup.
1) Manan Vohra
Manan Vohra, the opening batter, is the name that immediately comes to mind. Beside offering a like-for-like substitution, he additionally conveys an abundance of involvement in him in the IPL, having played 55 matches and scoring 1073 runs since making his presentation in 2013.
In the T20I format, Vohra was once touted as an India prospect. Even though that hasn’t happened yet, given Rahul’s likely absence, this could be the chance he needs to create a redemption story. He would need to turn in a preferable appearance over he did at the Syed Mushtaq Ali Prize 2022-23 however, having scored 161 runs at a normal of 32.30 yet a strike pace of simply 99.38.
Mohit Sharma, Piyush Chawla, and Ajinkya Rahane, among others, have lit up the IPL 2023 stage with spectacular comebacks. In the event that LSG tries him out in the playing XI against CSK, Vohra will be quick to join the rundown himself.
2) Karan Sharma
Karan Sharma, the captain of Uttar Pradesh, only played one game for LSG last year, against Gujarat Titans (GT) in Pune. He is a top-order batsman who can contribute with useful off-spin overs. In the most recent domestic season, he scored 239 runs in seven Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy matches, batting at an average of 59.75 and a strike rate of 114.90.
Since he is a local player, he will be accustomed to the conditions at Lucknow’s Ekana Cricket Stadium, which have made it difficult for batters to make runs.
LSG can benefit from that experience because their batting lineup has struggled recently in home matches. It shouldn’t come as a surprise if Karan plays in the CSK match.
3) Prerak Mankad
Prerak Mankad, who bats in the middle order for Saurashtra in domestic cricket, is definitely something LSG could think about to replace Rahul. He can not only hit the ball hard, but he can also throw medium-pace overs if necessary.
The Super Giants always have the option of keeping Ayush Badoni or promoting either Deepak Hooda or Marcus Stoinis to the top of the order if he bats in the middle order.
In domestic cricket, Mankad has established a reputation for standing his ground when under pressure. During the match against GT, he was used as an impact substitute but did not receive a delivery. With Rahul expected to miss out on action, time will tell if he gets that chance.