The current Indian Premier League (IPL 2024) team, the Kolkata Knight Riders, is unstoppable.
They began the journey south, winning easily over Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Delhi Capitals in Vizag after an impressive victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad at Eden Gardens. The Shreyas Iyer-led team destroyed the hosts by 106 runs, dominating both with the bat and the ball, to take the top spot in the table.
Sunil Narine handed the visitors a fantastic start by choosing to bat first. In the IPL, Angkrish Ranghuvanshi scored 54 runs off of 27 deliveries, while the seasoned all-rounder amassed 85 runs off of 39 deliveries in his first batting innings.
Andre Russell handled the situation after he got out to Anrich Nortje, moving the West Indies international up to number four and smacking him all over the field in response. At the close of the inning, Rinku Singh made a brief appearance with 26 runs off of eight deliveries, while the all-rounder scored 41 runs off of 19 deliveries.
Their fierce batting allowed them to score 272 runs in the first innings, five fewer than any other side in IPL history. The KKR pacers continually surprised DC throughout the chase, as they were 33/4 at one point. As Rishabh Pant explained after the game, the team’s poor start might have been a result of their plan to chase the ball.
The batters from Washington settled in quickly and started out strong. Because of some of the careless shots that the DC hitters played, it was easy for Vaibhav Arora and Mitchell Starc, who both took two wickets. But Pant and Tristan Stubbs took over when they were fired, stitching together a 95-run combination to prevent DC from losing. Despite both cricket players scoring fifty runs, Kolkata humiliated them, so it was anything but a formality.
1. Unstoppable Kolkata, unstoppable Narine
It is a general understanding among all teams that if they are unable to stop Narine at the bat, they are not going to win. The cricket player edged one to Pant, but the onfield umpire ruled it not out. It’s interesting because he should have returned to the pavilion much sooner.
Even after Narine scored an additional 61 runs, the Delhi captain decided against using DRS. With 85 runs in the end, he eliminated DC from the game. This may serve as a warning to other teams that Narine will destroy you if you are unable to return him to the pavilion.
2. KKR produces another future superstar in Angkrish Raghuvanshi.
Even though Angkrish Raghuvanshi won the 2022 U19 World Cup, there wasn’t much buzz surrounding him. Still, KKR, who are masters at finding potential, won him at auction, developed him, and are now giving him the chance to establish a reputation.
The team has already scouted players like Rinku Singh and Sanju Samson, among many others, and it appears that Raghuvanshi is the most recent addition. It’s encouraging that the 18-year-old batted with bravery and flamboyance, since it indicates that he didn’t care about going out and was only concerned on earning more runs.
Also read: IPL 2024: Match 16 Highlights from Delhi Capitals’ Second Innings vs. KKR
3. For KKR, everything tastes better—old wine, new wine
Andre Russell, the KKR old wine, once again showed his bat skills. This season, he has been incredibly reliable, which is fantastic news for the two-time winners. The team may very well be able to see a third if he plays in the same way. Conversely, Vaibhav Arora, the new wine, claimed three wickets overall and two during the powerplay. One could have assumed that Vaibhav would have to wait for his chance because Harshit Rana started and performed well for KKR in the previous games. But as Shreyas Iyer put it in the post-match presentation, since KKR inserted him in the third game, he has been “sensational.”
Losing skipper Rishabh Pant said:
We were just all over the place (with the ball), we could have done better, and it is one of those days I feel. As a batting unit, we talked about going hard (after the target) and that’s how we approach these games because it is better to be all-out trying to go for the total than not chase it down. It was quite loud (the venue) and couldn’t see the timer on the screen (talking about the non-DRS moments) and there was some issue with the screen as well, there are some things you can control and some you cannot control, you just need to go with the flow.
Time to reflect better as a team, as an individual and come back strong in the next game. I am enjoying each and every day (talking about his fitness and comeback) and cricket has its own ups and downs, and at the same time you can try and give your best as an individual.
Winning skipper Shreyas Iyer said:
No, it it didn’t to be honest, we thought we will reach 210-220 but 270 was an icing on the cake. I said in a pre-match interview that Sunny’s job is to take us off to a good start, if he doesn’t get us off, that’s also okay. (On Raghuvanshi) He was fearless from ball one, his mindset is phenomenal, the way he played his shots were pleasing to the eye.
It’s great to see all the bowlers stepping up at the right time and capitalizing on the opportunities. (On Harshit Rana’s injury) I also don’t know, on the field he was holding his shoulder. I have been in that situation before. Vaibhav Arora took crucial wickets for us, he stood up for us tonight.
POTM Sunil Narine said:
Cricket is all about batting, so to contribute with the bat is pleasing but I also enjoy my bowling. (On batting down the order with Abu Dhabi Knight Riders) We had sufficient batters, so opening was not needed then. At the end of the day, it is about what the team requires. Batting with Salt is good, he takes the pressure off me so it’s good to bat with him. On a good wicket like that, we bowled well and were on the money, so a total team effort from us tonight.
India
