Twitter in awe as KL Rahul 'times' a glorious maximum over covers off Marco Jansen
History has witnessed India’s struggle in South African conditions and it was no different in the first Test between the two sides on Boxing Day. While most Indian batters struggled against the inconsistent bounce at Centurion, KL Rahul hitting a six off Marco Jansen just made it look easy.
Eyeing a series win in South African shores looked a daunting task for the Indian batters as the hosts’ pacers were right on song with the red ball from the first over. They removed the Indian top three in quick time and followed it by fragmenting a 68-run stand between Shreyas Iyer and Virat Kohli post Lunch to open some wide cracks in the tourists’ batting order.
On a surface where most batters hobbled against the pacers, a revamped KL Rahul made playing strokes look easy on the eyes. A vivid example to cite was when the wicketkeeper-batter flaunted a glorious inside out over the covers off Marco Jansen on the first ball of the 45th over.
Jansen struggled to get any purchase with the new ball for South Africa as Kagiso Rabada, bowing from the other end, left the Indian batters in all sorts of trouble. To rub salts to the wounds, Rahul capitalised on the offered width and peppered a fuller delivery near the fifth stump line for a clean hit. The only people who had a chance of catching the ball were the spectators seated in the grass bank behind the fence.
Twitter was quick to pick the moment and applaud the execution from the Karnataka-born star as he made batting look simple on South Africa’s fortress.
Imperious from KL - he's holding his own amid some top bowling from South Africa
— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) December 26, 2023
Tune in to the 1st #SAvIND Test LIVE NOW | @StarSportsIndia pic.twitter.com/Z8OOJ2FIZn
That came outta middle of the bat!
Uffff.... Sound of the bat 😍😍😍🔥🔥🔥
— Haroon (@itx_haroon_453) December 26, 2023
He has got all of those in the pocket!
Stupendous shots
— Haider (@HaiderTarrar1) December 26, 2023
Brilliant strokes!
Good player good shot...😍💪
— Rao Jahanzaib (@RaoJahanzaib19) December 26, 2023
That shot will be remembered!
What a six from KL Rahul over the covers against Marco Jansen. pic.twitter.com/ZfEMxIMZET
— Juman Sarma (@cool_rahulfan) December 26, 2023
Fantastic!
What a shot, @klrahul 😍
— Maddy Madhav (@MaddyMadhav_) December 26, 2023
Six over cover.
Yeah! Agreed with that point completely!
@klrahul is one of the few batters who can make a six over extra cover look audacious and glorious at the same time. #SAvsIND #INDvsSA #KLRahul
— Saieesh Mayya (@MayyaSaieesh) December 26, 2023
Haven't seen such recently!
What a shot from KL Rahul! Over extra cover for a six in a Test match! Wow!
— Sreejith Mullappilli (@Mullappilli) December 26, 2023
KLass from KL!
KL Rahul hits a breathtaking SIX! #Cricket pic.twitter.com/Wvjmmk00wP
— Rahul Sharma (@Rahul_Sharma162) December 26, 2023
He's the man for India!
FIFTY BY KL Rahul
— THE AJAY Cric (@The_CricAjay) December 26, 2023
7 Four and 2 SiX ! in inning . 👏 #Indvssa #KLRahul pic.twitter.com/Us6eQBaZDP