The Kolkata Knight Riders lost their second game of the season in a row after a loss against SRH by 65 runs. The visitors put on a huge target of 226 runs at the end of their 20 overs, largely thanks to a solid start from their opening duo.
Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma started off with a bang, scoring at over the strike rate of 200. Klassen top-scored for SRH with 52 runs in 35 balls. Meanwhile, Blessing Muzarabani was the pick of the bowlers, taking 4 wickets, including 2 in the final over.
Angkrish Raghuvanshi scored 52 runs off 29 balls for KKR, while vice captain Rinku Singh scored 35 off 25 deliveries.
Speaking after the defeat, Ajinkya Rahane said that his team could not capitalise on a good start. He further added that KKR needed a partnership to get them going, but that could not happen.
“I thought the second innings, I felt the ball was slightly stopping. The slower balls were gripping a lot more than the first innings. And that`s what we, I don`t know, we thought the wicket will get better but the ball was little stopping. But again, see, no excuses. We got the good start. I thought first six overs we were 78. We lost that one extra wicket. Green is run out. But apart from that, we were going really well. As I said, middle overs were the crucial time for us. We needed that partnership from the set batters.” Rahane said.
The KKR captain further added that he is positive despite two defeats in two matches and is looking forward to the rest of the season.
“I think guys are doing really well. Just one off day with the bat. Last game we did really well. Just needed those small partnerships. I think if the batters can have that positive mindset and this extra awareness while batting, I think we`ll be fine.” Rahane added.
Ishan Kishan happy with SRH`s victory away at Kolkata
Winning captain Ishan Kishan was delighted with SRH`s victory. The skipper was happy with the way his team bounced back after the opening day defeat at the hands of defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru. Kishan praised the start given to his team by Head and Abhishek Sharma, which set up the foundation for SRH`s win.
“Head and Abhishek made our game easy. It was a complete team effort. Our plan was to take wickets. Harsh just bowled that ball and we were lucky to get that wicket. Harsh has been doing well for his domestic team as well. I would like to talk about Shivang, he bowled exceptionally well. He was bowling with big heart. He did the job for us.” Kishan said.
