Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) snatched victory from the jaws of defeat against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Eden Gardens on Thursday, April 9. While the likes of Mohammed Shami, Digvesh Rathi, and Ayush Badoni stood out, it was young Mukul Choudhary who played a blinder to take his team home.
Chasing a 182-run target on a two-paced pitch, LSG needed 54 runs off the last four overs. Choudhary smashed 52 out of these runs as the visiting side won off the last ball.
After the match, LSG head coach
Justin Langer revealed that it was performance analyst Shrinivas Chandrasekaran who urged the management to rope in the 21-year-old at the IPL 2026 mini-auction.
"Oh, we saw him earlier at a training camp a few months ago, the first time we picked him up. There's so much talent in this country. A big shout-out goes to Shrinivas, our data analyst, who said, 'Coach, we've got to get this kid.' So we did, and we were lucky to," Langer told JioStar after LSG's win.
Langer highlighted Choudhary's athleticism and rapid running between the wickets and likened him to the legendary Virat Kohli. The former Australian opener also mentioned that the wicketkeeper-batter has game sense akin to someone who has played 300 matches.
"What I love most about him is that he's a real athlete. The way he runs between the wickets is elite, like Virat. But the other thing is his game sense. We've had some practice games, and the way he talks about the game feels like he's played 300 matches already. He's got power, he's a great athlete, and he's got grace. As we both know, that's a pretty good combination," Langer said.
He's so young, but he's got that look in his eyes: Langer
Langer said that Choudhary has the potential to become a finisher as good as stalwarts like Tim David and Andre Russell. The former also commended the hunger that the youngster has at such a young age.
"He's played a bit of cricket, not a heap though. But there are very few players like the Tim Davids and the Andre Russells. I'm not even going to compare him, but those kinds of players build careers around finishing games. That's how he's grown up playing. He's used to finishing games, he thinks about it, and he's only 22 years old. He's so young, but he's got that look in his eyes. He's hungry. His parents and family will be very proud of him today. When you first come in, you try so hard, and this will be a massive moment in his life and career," Langer added.
