KL Rahul made his IPL debut in 2013 for RCB before having stints with Srunrisers Hyderabad and Punjab Kings before becoming Lucknow Super Giants captain in 2022.

New Delhi: Having been on the Indian Premier League (IPL) circuit for a decade now, KL Rahul is currently leading Lucknow Super Giants. But somewhere in his heart, the dashing wicketkeeper-batter still feels for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), his first IPL franchise. Following his stint with RCB, Rahul also had stints with Sunrisers Hyderabad and Punjab Kings before finally settling down at LSG in 2022.

However, little did anyone know about Rahul’s maiden IPL contract and how he was forced to sign on the dotted line. In a candid conversation with Ravichandran Ashwin on the latter’s YouTube channel, Rahul revealed how then RCB captain Virat Kohli made Rahul sign for the Bengaluru-based franchise.

“Virat was there (ITC Gardenia), coach Ray Jennings and other support staff were also there and Virat only said, ‘Would you want to sign this contract and play for RCB?’ I was like, ‘Are you kidding? It was always my dream.’ And then he said ‘I’m just kidding. It’s not an option, just sign this contract.’ I signed and Virat said ‘It’s gonna be a crazy ride. You’re going to enjoy a lot in the next couple of months’,” Rahul said while staring the story.

“The things that I learned (at RCB) in those two months, I mean the amount of time it would have taken me to be the player by playing just Ranji Trophy would have probably taken it 7-8 seasons. Those two months in the IPL, I gained so much knowledge and experience and everything was fast-forwarded,” he added.