Kolkata Knight Riders captain Shreyas Iyer lauded Umesh Yadav, Sunil Narine, and Rinku Singh after they won against Rajasthan Royals by seven wickets at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai on Monday.
Umesh Yadav has been in sensational form in the ongoing season and he once again provided the early wicket of Devdutt Padikkal.
Subsequently, Sunil Narine kept a tight lid on the scoring rate as he conceded only 19 runs in his quota of four overs. As Narine is mostly right on the money, the opposition batters hardly take any kind of risk against him.
On the other hand, Rinku Singh was at his best as he provided the finishing touches to get KKR over the line. Singh scored 42 runs off just 23 balls whereas Nitish Rana added 48 runs off 37 balls. Singh and Rana added 66 runs for the fourth-wicket alliance. Thus, KKR came up with a fine collective effort against RR as they ticked the right boxes.
In fact, it was a must-win game for KKR as they had lost their last five games and they will look to keep up the winning momentum.
Shreyas Iyer said in the post-match presentation, “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 start, 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.”
KKR would have gained a lot of confidence after such a fine win and they will look to continue the good show. KKR will next face Lucknow Super Giants at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Pune on Saturday.
