2 min readMay 7, 2026 09:16 AM IST
Former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar minced no words as he slammed wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul following Delhi Capitals’ stinging defeat against the Chennai Super Kings on Tuesday night.
After a series of poor outings, Delhi surprisingly opted to bat first on a slower pitch at the Arun Jaitley Stadium against CSK. Opening the batting, Rahul only mustered a run-a-ball start before falling midway through the Powerplay.
Delhi’s batting progressively slumped as they could only set up a 156-run target for CSK. Led by a superb unbeaten 87 from Sanju Samson, CSK crushed DC by eight wickets, handing them their sixth loss of the season. Manjrekar put the blame of the defeat squarely on Rahul’s slow-knock and lamented his inconsistency with intent in the Powerplay.
“It’s almost like odd and even games, where sometimes he goes after the bowling straightaway, which is the KL Rahul you want. But then he feels like he has earned the right, and he feels responsible for the rest of the batters to come, and then plays an innings like that. Once you get out after getting to 12 off 12, you’ve signed the death warrant for your team. Once they had those insipid first six overs, DC were done for the game.”
“KL Rahul, after playing a brilliant innings the match prior, got 12 off 12 balls in the first six overs. That’s two overs going at a strike rate of 100. When you have openers going at 200, you can’t be having an opener getting 12 off 12 in the hope that he’ll explode later,” Manjrekar elaborated.
Despite the poor outing, Rahul has been among the runs in recent games. His 75 had powered DC’s successful 226-run chase against the Rajasthan Royals last week. The 34-year-old had also broken the record for the highest individual score by an Indian with an unbeaten 152 at the Kotla against Punjab Kings, only to see his team drop the plot while defending a record 264-run total at home.
DC will next take on Kolkata Knight Riders in Delhi on Friday.
