Venkatesh Iyer was one of KKR’s standout players in the crushing loss. With just 30 balls, the southpaw smacked 50, and his tasteful knock glistened with three fours and four sixes. Venkatesh went down clutching his lower back after hitting a pull for six off Alzarri Joseph. To help him, the physio hurried outside. The 29-year-old didn’t exhibit any symptoms of discomfort after having therapy; he just kept batting.
On Friday, March 29, the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) defeated the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) by seven wickets, extending their winning run at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium to eight games.
KKR easily defeated the home team in the run chase, scoring with 19 balls remaining after holding them to 182/6. The former two-time champions were simply too strong with the bat in the second inning, so Virat Kohli’s undefeated 83 off 59 balls was futile.
“It’s just a little jacked up; I have to go and have a scan,” the Indore native responded to a question regarding his back following the game.
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The slower balls from the KKR seamers stuck to the pitch when RCB was batting, making it appear difficult to score runs. But in the second half, the visitors’ fluid stroke play utterly destroyed the RCB bowling. In the second inning, Venkatesh acknowledged that the surface had improved. He also praised Sunil Narine, the opener, for his brilliant 47 off 22 balls, which made life easier for the batters who came after.
To be honest, as the game went on, it became better. Sunil Narine deserves special recognition for the Pavilion End, where the pressure was relieved and we had to go take care of the formalities. The left-hander stated, “It was my responsibility to chase the bowling because it was crucial to capitalise on the platform created. The left-arm spinner was bowling.
Venkatesh Iyer says he was in the stands with his fiancée.
In celebration of reaching his ninth IPL half-century, Venkatesh raised his hand and planted a kiss. He disclosed that it was devoted to his fiancée, who happened to be in the grandstand.
The gifted all-rounder, who has participated in two ODIs and nine T20Is, said, “Also, my fiancee is here and I would like to credit her.”
In the second inning, Vijaykumar Vyshak entered the game for the RCB as their impact player. He had stats of 1/23 in his four overs bowled, which was good. Venkatesh praised the bowler for making things difficult for the KKR hitters by making effective use of the slower deliveries.
“Vyshak bowled really well and made good use of change-ups.” It was a little difficult to confront him, and it was difficult to pace off on that pitch overall. It was difficult, he said, even when we bowled fast deliveries.
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