'KL Rahul Has Gone Into a Shell And His Mind is Clouded': Robin Uthappa Backs Indian Opener

Former India cricketer Robin Uthappa has jumped in support of under-fire KL Rahul as he wants the team management to continue backing him in the upcoming matches of T20 World Cup. The flamboyant opener has been going through a rough patch with the bat in the mega ICC tournament. He started the tournament on a wrong note with just 4 runs against Pakistan and he followed it up two more failures against Netherlands and South Africa.

On Sunday, Rahul struggled to get going on a bounce Perth surface as he was dismissed by Lungi Ngidi for just 9. Rahul hasn’t been at his best after returning from injury as he had an underwhelming Asia Cup 2022 then found some form in the home T20I series against Australia and South Africa. However, nothing has gone in his favour in the T20 WC so far.

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Uthappa said that Rahul is a match-winner and he will perform in the coming matches if the management backs him. However, he said that Rahul has gone into a shell and is under a lot of pressure.

“KL Rahul is a proven campaigner and when he fires, he is going to be a match-winner for India. I feel they should continue backing him. When you back a player like him consistently, there will come a point when he will finally perform. Rahul is under a lot of pressure and it seems as if he has gone into a shell and his mind is clouded," Uthappa told ESPNcricinfo.

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Meanwhile, Suryakumar Yadav played one of the best knocks of his career on Sunday as he scored 68 runs against South Africa in tough conditions where other Indian batters struggled to get going.

Uthappa talked highly of Surya and rated him among the best batters in the T20 format.

“Suryakumar Yadav is definitely among the top T20I batters in world cricket. He’s got a lot of options because of those unorthodox shots. It’s always challenging to bowl against a batter who scores runs in all areas of the ground," he added.

The former cricketer further said that Suryakumar’s form will be crucial for India in the upcoming matches

“He is a very important player in the Indian lineup and will be the key for India if they want to go ahead in this tournament," he said.

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