KL Rahul slams his second ODI century against NZ: Stats
What's the story
Star Indian batter KL Rahul played a rescuing knock against New Zealand in the 2nd ODI at Niranjan Shah Stadium, Rajkot. Rahul hammered an incredible century at No. 5 after India were down to 118/4. He added 50-plus runs with both Ravindra Jadeja and Nitish Kumar Reddy to steady the ship. The Kiwis earlier won the toss and elected to field.
Knock
Rescuing ton from Rahul
Rahul came in when India lost three wickets within 120 runs. He joined Virat Kohli, who fell exactly after two overs, leaving India at 118/4. Rahul constantly rotated the strike, taking India toward 200 with Jadeja. However, the latter fell before the mark. Rahul then found support from Reddy. Despite his dismissal, Rahul held India's innings and reached his ton in the 49th over.
Information
Rahul returns unbeaten on 112
Rahul reached his ton on the final ball (49th over). He cleared the long-on boundary with a big hit off Kyle Jamieson. Rahul scored two more boundaries in the final over, helping India reach 284/7. He smashed a 92-ball 112* (11 fours and 1 six).
Stats
Rahul reaches these landmarks
As mentioned, Rahul now has two tons against New Zealand in ODI cricket. All his other ODI tons have come against six different sides. The 33-year-old raced to his eighth century in the format. His tally also includes 20 half-centuries. According to ESPNcricinfo, this was Rahul's fourth century at home (India) in the format. Five of his tons have come in Asia.
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Impressive stats against NZ
According to ESPNcricinfo, Rahul now has 469 runs from 10 innings at a remarkable average of 93.80 against New Zealand in ODI cricket. His strike rate against this opposition reads 111.13.
Career
A look at his career numbers
Rahul is currently one of the most dependable batters in ODI cricket. He has been bolstering India's middle order. In 93 ODIs, the Indian batter has racked up 3,359 runs at an average of 51.67. Most of his tons have come at No. 5 (1,477) with an average of 64.21. Rahul's last four ODI scores read 112*, 29*, 66*, and 60.