KL Rahul, the skipper of the Lucknow Super Giants, celebrated his 32nd birthday on Thursday. Rahul’s meteoric rise in cricket began when he was recruited by the Royal Challengers Bengaluru for the Indian Premier League in 2013. He made his debut for the Virat Kohli-led side against champions Kolkata Knight Riders at Bengaluru’s M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.
At 20, playing for RCB was Rahul’s dream. He fulfilled this dream by signing with the Bengaluru powerhouse before the 2013 season. Rahul actually had two stints with RCB. Recalling his early days with the franchise, he shared a little-known interaction with RCB captain Virat Kohli. In a conversation with veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, Rahul revealed Kohli’s reaction when the Karnataka batsman inked his first IPL contract with RCB.
“Virat Kohli and other RCB support staff were present at the ITC Gardenia when Virat jokingly asked me, “Would you want to sign this contract and play for RCB?” I excitedly responded, “That would be a dream come true!” Virat smiled and said, “I’m just kidding, you don’t have a choice. Go ahead and sign the contract.” I eagerly signed, after which Virat remarked, “You’re in for an amazing ride over the next few months, KL Rahul said.
Rahul was picked up by RCB after an impressive performance in the 2013 Syed Mushtaq Ali tournament. However, after scoring just 20 runs for RCB in 2013, he was released and signed by Sunrisers Hyderabad the following season for 1 crore INR. With SRH in 2014, Rahul found greater success, scoring 166 runs. That same year, he also made his Test debut for India.
“The things I learned in those two months at RCB was incredible. It would have taken me 7-8 seasons playing just Ranji Trophy to gain that level of knowledge and experience as a player. But through the IPL, everything was fast-forwarded and I gained so much in just two months,” he added.
After rejoining the Bengaluru franchise in 2016, Rahul scored 397 runs in 14 matches. The former RCB star was then sold to Punjab Kings for 11 crore rupees in a high-priced deal. Rahul, who won the IPL 2020 Orange Cap, was later brought in as captain of the Lucknow Super Giants for the 2022 season.
“Although I started my IPL career with Bengaluru and hoped to finish there but the league’s player trade rule allowed me the rewarding experience of playing for multiple teams and alongside diverse talent,” he concluded.