Key Points
Raghuvanshi smashed 50 off 32 balls in pivotal KKR performance
Vaibhav Arora and Varun Chakravarthy delivered exceptional bowling
KKR rebounds from previous defeat with comprehensive win
Fiery bowling spells by Vaibhav Arora and Varun Chakravarthy helped Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) seal an 80-run win over Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Thursday.
Speaking after the match in the post-match presentation, Varun said, "It was a very good inning by Angkrish, the way Venky took it deep and Rinku finished it. I thought we were 10 over par and I felt we could defend this. Vaibhav was outstanding, all the wickets he took were important and I was pleased for him. He was captaining us for the first time (on Rahane), he has not played a lot with us and he was on the mark today, we did not want to leave it to the other bowlers, take it deep and leave it to (Andre) Russell in the end, he is our best death bowler."
Varun also said that one cannot take anything for granted with Heinrich Klaasen is on the field, calling him the "best batter in the format".
"The last two days were tough for us, we were badly defeated in the last game, so the talk was to go go and stay out on the pitch, accumulate runs and then score quickly at the end. You cannot take anything for granted, you could bowl well today and go for runs in the next game, just do your practice, hit the gym and go about the work. It was the perfect game for us today, we need to keep building on this," he concluded.
Coming to the match, SRH won the toss and fielded first. Their decision seemed to pay off when they sent Quinton de Kock and Sunil Narine for single-digits, reducing KKR to 16/2, but a counter-attack by Rahane (38 in 27 balls, with a four and four sixes) and Raghuvanshi (50 in 32 balls, with five fours and two sixes) brought them back into the game. After the quick loss of these two stars, Venkatesh Iyer (60 in 29 balls, with seven fours and three sixes) and Rinku Singh (32* in 17 balls, with four boundaries and a six) powered KKR to 200/6 in their 20 overs with a 91-run stand for the fifth wicket.
Mohammed Shami (1/29) and Harshal Patel (1/43) were top wicket-takers for SRH.
During the run-chase, SRH was never truly in the match and lost wickets at a rapid rate. Vaibhav Arora (3/29) and Varun Chakravarthy (3/22) stood out as only Heinrich Klaasen (33 in 21 balls, with two fours and two sixes) and Kamindu Mendis (27 in 20 balls, with a four and two sixes) could cross the 20-run mark.
With this win, KKR's campaign is somewhat back on track as with two wins andtwo losses. They are in the fifth spot. SRH are at the bottom with a win and three losses.
Comments:
What a comeback from KKR after that tough loss! Angkrish and Venkatesh were absolute 🔥 today. Varun's bowling was clinical too. This is why IPL is so exciting!
While KKR played well, I think SRH's bowling changes were questionable. Bringing Harshal Patel in the death overs when he was already expensive didn't make sense. Their strategy needs work.
Angkrish Raghuvanshi is the find of the season! 50 off 32 balls under pressure is incredible for a young player. Can't wait to see more of him this IPL 💜
Varun's interview shows great sportsmanship - praising teammates and respecting opponents like Klaasen. This is the spirit cricket needs more of! Also that economy rate of 5.50 is insane in T20
As an SRH fan, this was painful to watch 😠Only Klaasen showed some fight. Our batting lineup needs serious restructuring. Can't keep depending on one player every match.
