Former Australian leg-spinner Shane Warne heaped praises on Indian Premier League 2018’s spin sensation, Rashid Khan, for his brilliant all-around performance in this season’s Qualifier 2 game between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Kolkata Knight Riders at Eden Gardens on May 25.
Rashid Khan’s dual display with the bat ( 34 off 10) and ball (3/19) helped SRH beat Kolkata by 13 runs to book their place in the final of IPL 2018, where they will play against Chennai Super Kings on Sunday in Mumbai.
Warne took to his official Twitter handle to praise the leg-spinner from Afghanistan. He wrote, “As a leg spinner I love seeing all the different types of leg spinners playing in the #IPL but watching @rashidkhan_19 bowl in these big games makes me proud as he loves this stage & pressure it also gets me excited !”
As a leg spinner I love seeing all the different types of leg spinners playing in the #IPL but watching @rashidkhan_19 bowl in these big games makes me proud as he loves this stage & pressure it also gets me excited ! _
— Shane Warne (@ShaneWarne) 25 May 2018
Soon after the match, Rashid responded to Warne’s tweet. “ Thank you so much Legspin Master @ShaneWarne,” Rashid said.
Thank you so much Legspin Master @ShaneWarne __
— Rashid Khan (@rashidkhan_19) 25 May 2018
Warne, who represented Australia in 145 Test matches and 194 ODIs, replied once again to Rashid.
“Pleasure buddy – was awesome watching your energy & skills ! Good luck in the #IPL2018 #final.”
Pleasure buddy – was awesome watching your energy & skills ! Good luck in the #IPL2018 #final https://t.co/BHiv8sstcX
— Shane Warne (@ShaneWarne) 26 May 2018
Coming to the match, Rashid helped a struggling Hyderabad post 174/7 by scoring bulk of the 50 runs in the last three overs, which proved to make all the difference at the end as he took three wickets that included the wickets of Chris Lynn (48), Robin Uthappa (2) and Andre Russell (3) to help his team cross the line.
Besides Warne, Indian cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar, too, praised Rashid for his superb show in the IPL. The ‘Master Blaster’ declared him as the best T20 spinner in the world on his Twitter handle. “Always felt @rashidkhan_19 was a good spinner but now I wouldn’t hesitate in saying he is the best spinner in the world in this format. Mind you, he’s got some batting skills as well. Great guy,” Tendulkar tweeted.
Always felt @rashidkhan_19 was a good spinner but now I wouldn’t hesitate in saying he is the best spinner in the world in this format. Mind you, he’s got some batting skills as well. Great guy.
— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) 25 May 2018
So far in IPL 2018, Rashid has taken 21 wickets in 16 matches.
