The 2024 champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) ended their disappointing Indian Premier League (IPL) season this year with a shambolic 110-run loss to Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi on Sunday, May 25.
The Knight Riders were never in contention as Pat Cummins won the toss and chose to bat first on a fast track. Abhishek Sharma and Travis Head put on a 92-run stand inside the first seven overs before Heinrich Klaasen, who was promoted to No. 3, hit the joint third-fastest century in IPL history off 37 balls, propelling SRH to a record 278/3 in the first innings. In reply, the Ajinkya Rahane-led side was bowled out for 168, with Harsh Dubey (3 for 34), Eshan Malinga (3 for 31), and Jaydev Unadkat (3 for 24) taking three wickets each.
After KKR’s poor season ended, Virender Sehwag chastised the management for selecting Ajinkya Rahane to bat at No. 3 ahead of the power-hitters. The former India opener believes the three-time champions should have followed the Lucknow Super Giants and Chennai Super Kings’ lead as they altered their batting order in search of the perfect combination.
“It is not stated anywhere that a captain must bat in the top three. Look at Pant; he sent players ahead of him because they were in form, and LSG took advantage of it,” Sehwag said.
KKR could have done the same. This was the responsibility of both the team management and the coaching staff.
Look, even CSK tried it against GT. Shivam Dube and Dewald Brevis stepped up the order; they adjusted it from prior matches,” he said.
KKR finished eighth on the points tally in IPL 2025, with five wins and seven loses from 14 games. Two of their matches were washed out. Meanwhile, SRH – KKR’s opponents in the 2024 Finals climbed to sixth place with a win on Sunday after spending much of the season in the bottom three. The competition is over for both franchises as they prepare to do well in the upcoming season.
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