Watch Paparazzi

Cricketer KL Rahul spotted wearing Rolex

KL Rahul was photographed casually seated outdoors, wearing a Balenciaga oversized tee and Puma shorts — a deliberate streetwear-meets-luxury contrast that only a confidence-assured collector can pull off. On his wrist sat what is clearly a Rolex Day-Date 40 in 18K Everose gold, its warm rose-gold tone unmistakable even against the dark clothing. The sighting aligns with Rahul's well-documented appetite for serious horological pieces.

The watch is almost certainly reference 228235, the 40mm iteration of the Day-Date introduced by Rolex in 2015 to succeed the long-running 118235. Powered by the in-house caliber 3255 — a 70-hour power reserve movement with Rolex's Chronergy escapement and 14 patents — the 228235 represents the current pinnacle of Rolex manufacture engineering. The chocolate (moka) dial features baguette-cut diamond indexes at 3, 6, and 9 o'clock alongside applied rectangular markers, visible clearly in the reference image. The fluted bezel and President bracelet complete the canonical Day-Date silhouette that has graced the wrists of heads of state since Dwight Eisenhower.

From a collector perspective, the Day-Date 40 in Everose with chocolate dial occupies a specific sweet spot: it is bold enough for those who want presence, yet restrained enough to be worn daily without theatrics. The combination of Everose gold — Rolex's proprietary 18K rose gold alloy with a trace of platinum for color stability — and the chocolate sunray-brushed dial creates a monochromatic warmth that ages exceptionally well in both appearance and desirability.

KL Rahul has consistently demonstrated a preference for watches that carry institutional weight rather than flashy independent pieces. His choice of the Day-Date 40 signals an understanding that the reference is, architecturally and historically, the senior-most model in the Rolex catalog — the watch Rolex itself calls the 'watch of presidents.'

At a retail price of approximately $37,550 USD, the 228235 in Everose with chocolate dial trades on the grey market at a modest premium, typically between $42,000 and $46,000 depending on condition and papers. Unlike steel sports Rolex references, precious-metal Day-Dates remain closer to retail, making this a relatively accessible entry into Rolex's prestige tier for high-net-worth buyers.