For someone who enjoyed a sensational run last season, KL Rahul might have taken his time, but he is surely getting into the groove in the 2019 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). The right-handed batsman smashed an unbeaten 53-ball 71 to power Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) to a six-wicket win over Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) stadium on 8th April.

Chasing a paltry total of 150 runs, the dashing opener looked in ominous touch while playing beautiful strokes early on. While his opening partner Chris Gayle couldn't score more than 16 runs, Rahul appeared solid in his approach and carried the baton for his side till the very end.

Twitter/@IPL

The 26-year-old stitched a match-winning partnership of 114 runs for the second wicket alongside Mayank Agarwal who gave adequate support to his partner during his 43-ball 55. Their partnership was eventually broken by Sandeep Sharma following a poor shot selection by Mayank. And, the quick dismissals of David Miller (1) and Mandeep Singh (2) gave a glimmer of hope to the visiting side. But, Rahul made sure there were no hiccups as he got Punjab over the line.

Rahul's brilliant batting display meant that David Warner's pivotal knock of 70 runs went in vain as Hyderabad paid dearly for their mediocre batting and lacklustre bowling in Chandigarh.

Twitter/@IPL

Having begun the tournament with lowly individual scores of 4 and 1, Rahul seems to be getting his mojo back as he slammed three fifties in his next four innings (71*, 15, 55, 71*). The KXIP opener has now amassed 217 runs at a strike-rate of over 120 in six games he has played so far. He has also secured the third spot in the race for the 'Orange Cap' behind Hyderabad's dynamic openers Jonny Bairstow (263) and Warner (349).