Shah Rukh Khan’s Kolkata Knight Riders on Monday defeated Rajasthan Royals by seven wickets in an IPL match.
Batting first, Rajasthan Royals 152-5 with skipper Sanju Samson scoring fifty. Samson made 54 from 49 balls.
In response, the KKR achieved the target by losing just three wickets in 19.1 overs. Nitish Rana remained unbeaten at 48 from 37 balls while Rinku Singh was not out at 42 from 23 balls. His knock included three fours and two sixes. Shreyas Iyer made 34. Singh was declared Player Of The Match.
Reacting to his side’s defeat, Samson said that the wicket was a bit slow and the KKR players ‘also bowled really well.’
“With the kind of batting we have, we would have liked a few more boundaries at the end and finished off a bit better. It was a great effort with the ball, we showed some real fight in the game and the energy was really amazing. We have to keep on assessing the game and who is batting with you, wickets at the wrong time stopped me to keep on going with the momentum,” Samson was quoted as saying.
A visibly jubilant KKR skipper Shreyas Iyer said that this was the kind of start his team needed. “We have been talking about Umesh (Yadav) 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.”
Talking about Rinku Singh, Iyer said, “The way Rinku was maintaining his calm, playing only his second or third game, is outstanding. He is a great asset for the franchise for the future.”