Mumbai : Kolkata Knight Riders beat Rajasthan Royals by 7 wickets thereby putting an end to their losing streak in this year’s IPL.
Thanks to Nitish Rana and Anukul Roy, KKR successfully chased 152 runs to emerge winners. Shreyas Iyer, KKR skipper, said, ‘Right from the powerplay when our bowlers conceded just 36 runs and took a wicket, it was just the start we needed. We have been talking about Umesh right from the start. He has increased his pace, bowls those hard lengths and as a captain you just have to give him the ball to deliver.
Whenever I give Sunil Narine the ball, he gets me wickets, but the batsmen don’t take chances against him. He is very economical, but when he gets a wicket, he gets a big one. The way Rinku is maintaining is calm, playing only his second or third game, is outstanding. He is a great asset for the franchise for the future. The way he gets his stays, he doesn’t look like a newcomer.
We are looking for a good start. I love pressure, but it sweats a lot of me to build the innings in every game. Before the start of the game, I told Mavi, Rinku and Anukul to take the tough positions in the field. Mavi’s catch of Buttler was superb.’
Sanju Samson, RR skipper, said, ‘ The wicket was a bit slow, but they also bowled really well but with the kind of batting we had, would have liked a few more boundaries at the end and finish off a bit better. I think we were short by 15-20 runs. Having few niggles from the last couple of games, It’s feeling good now and I’m recovering well. It’s a great effort (with the ball), we showed some real fight in the game and the energy was really amazing. Personally, we should have batted a bit more better. Of course, win the next toss for sure.
We have to keep on assessing the game and who is batting with you, wickets at the wrong time stopped myself to keep on going with the momentum. Wanted to build up the partnership and when I wanted to go hard I think they bowled really well and we couldn’t execute our shots.
Brendon McCullum said, ‘Really pleased obviously (with the win). (Losing) Five games on the bounce, it’s not easy. I need to compliment all the guys for the way they played tonight. The guys have stuck together and been realistic. Tonight was a fantastic performance, from two guys who are very good friends (Rana and Rinku). Selection role is really important for me.
Couple of guys have lost their form and confidence, there have been a few injuries, so we had to force a couple of changes. We wanted five bowlers and with the pitch on the slower side, Anukul (Roy) came in. We wanted Mavi in the team. He (Rinku) has been in the franchise for a long period of time. Lucky enough to spend some time with him. He needed to make a statement and he made it in the first game itself. Rana was out in the middle and that gave him (Rinku) a lot of confidence in his company. Anukul was brilliant, he has been around in the IPL for a long time.
He is also similar to Rinku, who carries himself well and has a good future ahead of him. It (opening) is an area where we need to tidy up. We have been off in the powerplay compared to the other teams.’
