IPL 2026: 'People throw stones only at a tree that bears fruit' - Aakash Chopra lauds KL Rahul after record century against PBKS

Former Indian batter Aakash Chopra has praised KL Rahul for his magnificent innings for the Delhi Capitals against the Punjab Kings at the Arun Jaitley Stadium.

Batting first on a hot Delhi afternoon, Rahul was the star of the show with a blistering 152 off just 67 balls. He smashed 15 fours and nine sixes in his knock, and stitched a mammoth 220-run stand for the second wicket with Nitish Rana, who scored 91 off 44 balls. Rahul’s unbeaten 152 is the highest individual score by an Indian batter in the history of the IPL, and the first Indian batter to score 150 in an innings.

Chopra lauded the Karnataka batter, praising his ability to score big runs while being technically compact. He praised Rahul’s intent and stated that he gets criticised when he plays slowly. 

"He has become the Indian with the highest score in the IPL. He was brilliant. When you can play like this, you are criticised when you don't try to play like this. His ability is so special that it's enviable. He scores runs at such speed despite being technically compact. However, when the intent is not seen at times, or when he slows down excessively, you don't expect that from him because he can do this," he said, speaking on his YouTube channel.

Chopra further added that criticism towards Rahul is unwarranted due to his ability to play at such a high strike rate. He believes that conversations about strike rate come due to Rahul batting more cautiously.

"That's why he is criticised. People throw stones only at a tree that bears fruit. His ceiling is so high that you feel hurt when you see anything less than that. There is no slogging with his batting. It is just sheer class. The discussion happens on the strike rate at times due to a lack of intent. So that is avoidable, but this was a brilliant knock," he observed.

Rahul’s innings helped the Capitals put on a mammoth 264/2 in their 20 overs. The Capitals, though, failed to defend the massive total, as Prabhsimran Singh and Priyansh Arya launched an early onslaught in the powerplay. Shreyas Iyer carried on in the middle overs, taking his team home with four wickets to spare, completing the highest ever chase in T20 cricket.