Did A KL Rahul Decision Error Cost Lucknow The Match Against Gujarat?

Was bowling Deepak Hooda & Ravi Bishnoi a blunder by KL Rahul?

The 4th match of the IPL 2022 between two debutants - Gujarat Titans and Lucknow Super Giants - was a roller coaster ride. Both the teams had opportunities to grab the match throughout the game and it was the Titans who eventually won it with five wickets while chasing a 159-run target set by Lucknow. 

GT captain Hardik Pandya did what everyone would have done at Wankhede Stadium - bowl first, a pattern that is emerging in every game of the IPL 2022 so far but it's still in its early stage. 

1) Sensational Shami 

Gujarat's bowling lineup had four pacers and two leg spinners, which meant that Lucknow had an upper hand going into the powerplay with two pace hitters - KL Rahul and Quinton de Kock set to face a favorable matchup upfront. 

However, Mohammad Shami bowled a dream spell, pitching the ball at good lengths where his three victims - Rahul, de Kock, and Manish Pandey don't score runs comfortably. 

Shami's sensational 3/10 in the powerplay along with Varun Aaron dismissing Evin Lewis on a short ball meant LSG was 32/4 after six overs. 

2) Recovery Mode On - Courtesy Hooda & Ayush Badoni 

IPL debutant Ayush Badoni had a great start where he had to do nothing but rotate the strike. Despite the scoreboard pressure, Badoni looked comfortable at the crease and was helped by Deepak Hooda's presence at the other end. 

The duo added crucial 87 runs to help LSG recover from a horror start to IPL and got the team total to a fighting 160. 

3) Hardik Pandya's New Role 

Captain Pandya gave viewers a pleasant surprise by not only making his comeback in bowling but also going close to 140 kmph in his four overs. 

But the surprise wasn't only in the bowling department, Pandya came in at number four after Titans too had a poor start to the run chase - losing Shubman Gill and Vijay Shankar inside three overs. 

It isn't a position or the entry point Pandya hasn't done well in the past. However, Hardik looked in refreshing touch and scored 19 runs in his first 10 balls - has a 156 strike rate in the first ten balls. Pandya was fed full-length bowls at a decent pace - something he loves smacking at any time while he's batting. 

At the end of the game, Pandya revealed that he will be mostly batting at number four this season. 

4) KL Rahul's Spin Gamble - a blunder? 

Things were looking tight for Gujarat at the end of the 15th over when they still needed 67 runs in the last five overs. David Miller and Rahul Tewatia (both left-handers) were at the crease and hadn't hit a boundary in those three overs they batted - 12-15. 

Both Miller and Tewatia were facing an unfavorable matchup - Hooda, who till the end of the 15th over had bowled two overs for nine runs and taken one wicket. Krunal Pandya had finished a nice spell of his 1/17 in four overs. 

In the 16 & 17th overs, KL Rahul had to take a call if he wanted to continue with Hooda, who had bowled two good overs along with Ravi Bishnoi, who bowls brilliantly against left-handers. 

Rahul took the gamble of continuing with Hooda in the 16th over in which he got smacked for 22 runs by Tewatia and Miller. In the next over, Rahul went in with Bishnoi's strength of bowling against left-handers. But it was Tewatia on the strike and he reverse swept Bishnoi for a six. 

The reverse was a gamble played by Tewatia and it worked which also resulted in Bishnoi changing his line and got eventually taken apart for 17 runs in that over. 

Had Rahul's gamble worked, Lucknow would have been defending a lot more than 29 runs in the final three overs. KL's decision meant Dushmantha Chameera could bowl only three overs. 

We might never know if Lucknow had bowled one over of spin less what could have happened but it was a gamble taken according to the strength of his bowler. Rahul didn't want to give more pace overs to Tewatia and Miller, making his best bet - Hooda, a bowler in momentum.