Wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul is not big on flamboyant celebrations and going over the top in making his point. However, the right-handed batter has been expressive in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season for the Delhi Capitals. Former South Africa wicketkeeper-batter Mark Boucher expects a fiery reaction from Rahul if he gets going against his old team, Lucknow Super Giants.
LSG did not retain KL Rahul before the start of the IPL 2025 season. Last year, he was also involved in an animated on-field chat with owner Sanjiv Goenka after SunRisers Hyderabad thrashed LSG. Goenka’s hand gestures showed he was seemingly berating the then-LSG captain for the team’s performance.
During the IPL 2025 season, KL Rahul has expressed emotions several times. After leading Delhi Capitals to a win against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Rahul celebrated in style, marking his territory, clearly saying, “This is my home.”
This reaction from KL Rahul has left Mark Boucher wondering whether someone really upset the right-handed batter and why we are seeing out-of-character emotional responses.
Speaking to JioStar before the match between Delhi and Lucknow, Boucher said, “Just listening to him and watching him play, it’s like he is doing it for something else. Whether it’s that someone has really upset him because there’s a lot of emotion coming out, especially in that RCB knock.”
“I don’t see why it would be any different today. As I said, there are a lot of things that have happened behind closed doors. It just seems like today would be the perfect day for him to stand up for Delhi,” he added.
‘We might see more than emotional spillover’
Boucher also expects KL Rahul to let his feelings known to the world if he performs well against Lucknow and the Delhi Capitals win to further cement their position in the top half of the points table.
“We might see him full of emotions again if he gets going. We might see more than just an emotional spillover from KL Rahul tonight. Everything that’s been happening has been leading to it,” said Boucher.
In the 2025 season, KL Rahul has scored 266 runs in seven matches at an average of 53.20 and a strike rate of 158.33.
Regarding the contest between Delhi and Lucknow, Axar Patel won the toss and opted to bowl first. Delhi made one change to their playing XI as they brought in Dushmantha Chameera in place of Mohit Sharma.