Follow UsKL Rahul’s stocks as a T20 batter grew multifold as the Indian batter became the fastest to get to 8,000 T20 runs, during his half-century against Gujarat Titans, on May 18 (Sunday). The right-handed batter, forced to open, got off to a great start with two boundaries in the first over against Mohammed Siraj.
However, he briefly slowed down over the next three overs, with the ball moving around as he operated at a strike rate below 100. Rahul turned it around in the fifth over of the innings, smashing two boundaries.
But it was really against a returning Kagiso Rabada where Rahul accelerated, with a six over the long leg region. The right-hander then topped it with a stunning cut through the cover point region before smashing it down the ground for his second six of the innings.
Rahul got past the 8,000 run mark in T20s with a six, becoming the third-fastest to the milestone, at 224 innings. Rahul was only behind T20 maverick Chris Gayle (213 innings) and Pakistan's Babar Azam (218 inns) to the milestone.
213 inns - Chris Gayle
218 inns - Babar Azam
224 inns - KL Rahul*
243 inns - Virat Kohli
244 inns - Mohammad Rizwan
However, the Delhi Capitals batter was miles ahead of Virat Kohli, who, till then, was the fastest Indian to the milestone. Kohli got to that landmark in 243 innings, 19 innings more than Rahul.