'He was an extremely hated guy....' - Former India cricketer praises KL Rahul for magnificent show against Australia in Champions Trophy 2025

Team India advanced to the finals of the Champions Trophy 2025 after beating Australia in the semi-final on March 4. The real hero of the game was none other than Virat Kohli. The 36-year-old player scored 84 runs, proving himself to be one of the best when it comes to chasing in ODIs. However, KL Rahul played a fantastic innings in the middle order along with scoring the winning runs for the team.

Former cricketer Aakash Chopra came in his defense and said that Rahul deserves much more respect than he gets. After the ODI World Cup 2023, KL Rahul is often trolled for his slow nature of playing. Despite winning several other games for India, Rahul is the one on the giving end but never on the receiving end. 

"KL Rahul - winning hit. I feel privileged when I am able to call the winning runs. So I was happy I was there, and I was even more happy for Rahul. Rahul gets trolled and even I also get trolled along with him for no rhyme or reason. He is not my friend. However, he was an extremely hated guy on 19 November," said Aakash Chopra on his YouTube channel. 

Aakash Chopra lauds Axar Patel for terrific performance against Australia

India have gotten a fine all-rounder in the form of Axar Patel, who has the ability to bat and bowl at the same time. Aakash Chopra praised him for his efforts in the tournament. He was extremely handy with the bat more than the ball, which gave India an extra edge in the middle overs. 

"Bapu does the job with the ball. He dismisses the dangerous Glenn Maxwell. Although Glenn Maxwell's wicket isn't talked about that much, Alex Carey's run out will be talked about more, but Glenn Maxwell could have taken them close to 300. He has got the ability, but he hit a six and then out," added Chopra.