KKR do not have any doubts on Mitchell Starc's quality: Harshit
KKR do not have any doubts on Mitchell Starc’s quality: Harshit
KKR do not have any doubts on Mitchell Starc’s quality: Harshit
NEW DELHI: Lucknow Super Giants bowlers first leaked 235 in a historic first at the Ekana Stadium and batters then had a disappointing run, collapsing under the scoreboard pressure as KL Rahul and Co. succumbed to a heavy 98-run defeat at the hands of Kolkata Knight Riders on Sunday.Smashing the LSG bowlers left, right and centre, Sunil Narine hit a sparkling 81 which was followed by a collective effort by the bowlers as KKR restricted the hosts to 137 all out and moved to the top of the table.Skipper Rahul after the embarrassing defeat blamed an overall poor performance for the horror show in their final home game of the season.“Lot of runs. Poor performance overall. It was a big total. Like I said, It’s a poor performance with both bat and ball. Narine in powerplay puts a lot of pressure. Our bowlers couldn’t handle the pressure,” Rahul said at the post-match presentation.While the Ekana surface produced its first ever 200-plus T20 score, Rahul did not blame the pitch and conditions and said it stayed true throughout the game.“Wicket is very good. There is a bit of bounce if you bowl hard length. It wasn’t a bad pitch. 235 was 20-30 runs were above par. Our batting was poor,” Rahul added.With their fifth defeat of the season in 11 games, Lucknow were pushed to the fifth spot on the points table but Rahul said that team will look to bounce back quickly and will look to make it three out of three going ahead and finish inside top four.“Once we go back to dressing room, we move on from this game and see where we went wrong. Last home game, we are on the road for the next few games, we need to be little bit more fearless,” Rahul said.The win, on the other hand, brought KKR closer to the playoffs.Shreyas Iyer and Co. now have 8 wins in 11 matches.
KKR’s Ramandeep Singh has possibly pulled off the Catch Of The IPL 2024 season when he took an absolute blinder during the match against LSG on Sunday, May 5. Ramandeep took the catch to dismiss Arshin Kulkarni and made a stunning effort to complete it. Kulkarni was facing Mitchell Starc and ended up top edging a delivery, which went high in the air. At one moment, it felt like the KKR fielder wouldn’t make it as it seemed the ball was going to land in between him and Andre Russell, who was running in from the boundary. But Ramandeep would cover a distance of 21 metres and would dive in to complete the catch as the entire commentary box would be left in awe. You can see the full video of the effort from Ramandeep below: This is not the first time Ramandeep had taken such a catch against the same opponents. The KKR fielder would take a superb catch in the reverse fixture in Eden Gardens to give Starc the wicket. LSG vs KKR: Live Updates KKR had posted 235 runs in their 20 overs thanks to some brilliant batting from Sunil Narine and a late blitz from Ramandeep. How well did Ramandeep bat for KKR against LSG? Ramandeep played a wonderful cameo which helped KKR post the strong total in Lucknow. The KKR batter scored 25 off just 6 balls as he hit a boundary and 3 sixes which powered KKR past 230 runs in the end. The innings was given the perfect start from Phil Salt and Narine, who scored 61 runs in 4.2 overs. Narine would continue the onslaught and scored his 4th 50-plus score of the season and went past the 450-run mark. IPL 2024 Full Coverage | IPL 2024 Points Table and Standings | 2024 IPL Full Schedule Cameos from Angkrish Raghuvanshi and Shreyas Iyer would help KKR get past 200 runs after LSG seemingly pulled things back. Published On: May 5, 2024
Kolkata Knight Riders’ Mitchell Starc bowls during the match against Lucknow Super Giants in the Indian Premier League 2024, at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on April 14, 2024. | Photo Credit: ANI Australian speedster Mitchell Starc is not bothered about the criticism directed at him for not living up to his high IPL price tag but on Sunday admitted that his lack of T20 experience could be the reason for taking longer time to find his rhythm. Starc, the IPL’s highest buy at a whopping ₹24.75 crore, came up with his best show this season, claiming 3/28, including two wickets in the final over, that helped KKR restrict Lucknow Super Giants to a below par 161 for 7. KKR then chased down the target in 15.4 overs with eight wickets intact. Prior to Sunday, Starc took just two wickets in four matches with an average of 77 and leaked 11 runs per over as he drew widespread criticism. “I don’t read anything so that doesn’t bother me,” Starc said after KKR’s win at the Eden Gardens here. “I haven’t played a lot of T20 cricket in the last couple of years, so it’s probably taken me a little bit longer than I would have liked to get back into the rhythm of things and make a better impact. So today was nice in that regard.” Managing workload in T20 cricket and adjusting to the rigours of the IPL is not tough for Test cricketers, said Starc. “I’m 34, so I’m pretty good with my workloads. I’ve been doing this a long time, so that’s fine. “It’s T20 cricket. For the guys that play a lot of Test cricket, this is certainly a lot easier physically. It’s probably more getting used to the tactical side of it.” He said in T20 cricket, games come around so quickly that players can’t really think about what has happened. “We play again on Tuesday, and I think that’s a feature of T20 cricket, whether you have a good day or bad day. You quickly focus on the next game. “So far, we’ve started the season quite well as a group, and now we move on to Tuesday. “We kept them (LSG) under par with the way we bowled, and that showed through with the way that our batters went out there and did it pretty clinically in the end. So a pretty solid day for KKR,” he added.
LSG wicketkeeper and captain KL Rahul during the IPL match against KKR at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on April 14, 2024. | Photo Credit: AFP Lucknow Super Giants skipper K.L. Rahul on Sunday said panic has not set within his team after two successive defeats, but stressed on the need to have some tough conversations within the group. LSG went down by eight wickets against Kolkata Knight Riders here, as the side is now placed fifth on the points table with six points from as many matches. “Not panicking, but you can’t put your feet up and hope results will go your way. We have to figure out where you are going wrong. We will have a few difficult conversations,” said Rahul during the post-match presentation. “The last couple of games, we have not been able to get more than 160, and that is something to think about, and see how we can get to the 180-200 run mark.” Being asked to bat first, LSG were limited to 161 and KKR chased down the target in just 15.4 overs. Analysing their batting, Rahul rued losing too many wickets upfront. “I think it was the other way round. The ball started nipping around a lot more after the lights came on. I can’t say we played bad shots, but the shots we played, we did not execute well,” he offered. “We kept losing wickets in bunches, and we left about 30 runs out there. If we kept wickets in our hand and had one of our top three-four batters through, we could have got a lot more runs. We got a few wickets but leaked too many boundaries.” The character of bowlers showed: Shreyas ============================== Meanwhile, KKR captain Shreyas Iyer credited the bowlers for the win. The triumph has allowed the two-time champions to maintain the second spot on the table with eight points from five matches. “The way we played, it was a comprehensive victory. We bowled well under pressure, and then, finishing off the game, it was the icing on the cake,” said Iyer. “It was important to bowl as many slower balls as possible. With the heat coming in, the wicket was a little dry, and we wanted to minimise the half-volleys, and we wanted the batters to use their power and clear the ropes. “That is what we were focusing on, and I feel we executed it phenomenally well. The character and attitude bowlers showed were exceptional.” The unbeaten partnership of 120 runs between Iyer (38 runs, 38b) and Phil Salt (89 off 47b) played a pivotal role in KKR’s success. Salt lauded Iyer for his support. “Shreyas was good in the middle and kept me on task. Good to have Shreyas back (in form).” The Englishman also credited the Eden Gardens wicket for making him feel at home. “Before the lights came on, I felt it was a little slower. When they came on, there was a bit more moisture to allow the ball to slide on, so it got a bit better for our innings. “In India, this (pitch) is probably the most similar to home (in England). The ball bounces a bit more, and you can aim squarer.”
NEW DELHI: Opening batter Phil Salt smashed a fiery unbeaten 47-ball 89 after pacer Mitchell Starc‘s superb spell as Kolkata Knight Riders on Sunday began their five-match home stretch with a lop-sided eight-wicket win over Lucknow Super Giants at the Eden Gardens.After an all-round bowling display restricted Lucknow to a below-par 161 for 7, the Kolkata batters made light work of the chase, accomplishing the target with 26 balls to spare.The defeat for KL Rahul’s Lucknow turned out to be the first-ever against Kolkata in the IPL.Prior to the heavy defeat on Sunday, Lucknow had met Kolkata thrice in the IPL and had a 100 percent record against the Men in Purple.On all the other three past occasions, Lucknow won the game batting first.As KKR registered their first-ever win over LSG in four matches, they also became the second team after Delhi Capitals this season to chase down a 160-plus total against LSG.Prior to the defeats against DC and KKR, LSG had won each of the 13 IPL matches while defending a 160-plus total.After the defeat, skipper KL Rahul admitted that the defeat was a proper hammering and will be tough to digest for the team. “One of those days, it was a proper hammering. Games like these are tough to digest and we have seen in IPL and every team goes through that. We will try and work out what went wrong and come back better. Not panicking (about back-to-back losses), need to figure out where we went wrong and the last couple of games we haven’t been able to get past 160 and that’s something we want to see and be better at it,” Rahul said after the defeat.With three defeats and an equal number of wins in six games, Lucknow currently sit at the sixth spot on the points table.KKR, on the other hand have 4 wins in 5 matches and are at second spot.
Kolkata Knight Riders captain Shreyas Iyer with his Lucknow Super Giants counterpart K.L. Rahul during the toss of the Indian Premier League 2024, in Kolkata on April 14, 2024 | Photo Credit: PTI Kolkata Knight Riders won the toss and opted to bowl against Lucknow Super Giants in their IPL match in Kolkata on April 14. Harshit Rana came in for Rinku Singh in KKR’s playing XI, while LSG handed his maiden IPL cap to West Indian pacer Shamar Joseph and brought back Deepak Hooda and Mohsin Khan. Teams: Lucknow Super Giants: KL Rahul (c & wk), Quinton de Kock, Deepak Hooda, Marcus Stoinis, Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, Krunal Pandya, Ravi Bishnoi, Yash Thakur, Shamar Joseph, Mohsin Khan. Kolkata Knight Riders: Phil Salt (wk), Sunil Narine, Venkatesh Iyer, Shreyas Iyer (c), Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Mitchell Starc, Vaibhav Arora, Varun Chakravarthy, Harshit Rana.
It was a rather starry affair with VVIPs and celebs at Diljit Dosanjh’s Mumbai concert on April 13. Isha Ambani’s husband Anand Piramal arrived, surrounded by an entourage of security. Apart from him, Tamannaah Bhatia-Vijay Varma, Rajkummar Rao-Patralekhaa, Arpita Khan Sharma, Shura Khan, Iulia Vantur, Taapsee Pannu, Kriti Sanon with sister Nupur Sanon, Ram Kapoor-Gautami Kapoor, Munawar Faruqui, Avneet Kaur, Maniesh Paul, Tejasswi Prakash-Karan Kundrra, Boney Kapoor, and others were present at the event.
Two-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders will seek home comfort in their bid to return to winning ways when they face a depleted Lucknow Super Giants in an Indian Premier League match in Kolkata on April 14. The match will be KKR’s first of the five matches at home on the trot and the Gautam Gambhir-mentored side will be fully aware this can prove decisive to clinch the play-off spot for the first time since 2021. In the points tally, nothing separates the two teams, both of whom have secured three wins each, and lost their respective last-round matches. KKR’s over-reliance on their Caribbean ageing duo of Sunil Narine and Andre Russell was exposed by defending champions Chennai Super Kings when they lost by seven wickets in their previous outing. Narine (27) and Russell (10) failed with the bat and the team, who had posted two 200-plus scores from three matches on the back of the Caribbean duo’s blazing form, could manage an under par 137/9 at Chennai. That sums up KKR’s batting that has relied on some odd fireworks and missed an anchor in the absence of Nitish Rana (finger injury), who is slated to sit out of another match. In the spotlight since the beginning of the season, KKR captain Shreyas Iyer has failed to impress and his scores give an abysmal picture — 0, 39 not out, 18 and 34. Their another designated batter Venkatesh Iyer has three single digit scores this season to go with one odd fifty against Royal Challengers Bengaluru and the team, it seems, doesn’t have a clear role for him. From batting at No. 3 in their IPL opener against Sunrisers Hyderabad, Iyer was seen in the finisher’s role at No. 7 and No. 5 in their last two matches. Ramandeep Singh also had a lean run after an impressive 35 against SRH. The 2022 U-19 World Cup winning Angkrish Raghuvanshi has impressed the most following his 54 against Delhi Capitals. And he will like to return among runs after failing to convert his start against CSK. The most-talked about signing Mitchell Starc’s poor form with the ball has been the talk of the town. The Aussie speed gun has an economy of 11.00 and took his first wicket of this IPL against DC after giving away 100 runs in the first two matches. Having come as Impact Subs, left-arm orthodox spinner Anukul Roy has been impressive and he would like to forge formidable partnership with Narine. While KKR will be overwhelming favourites at Eden, LSG with their unassuming approach will not give up easily, even as they will miss their pace sensation Mayank Yadav for a second successive match. Recovering from a side strain that ruled him out of their match against Gujarat Titans, Mayank is doing “good” but skipper KL Rahul has said that he may take “a couple of more games before coming back”. Mayank’s replacement Arshad Khan failed to impress, conceding at 10.73 runs over as they failed to defend 167 at home against DC last evening. Mohsin Khan, who claimed 2/34 against Punjab Kings, could be a perfect replacement but it remains to be seen if he’s fully recovered from his hamstring injury that had sidelined the left-arm pacer. The team owned by Kolkata-based industrialist Sanjeev Goenka will hope for a much better show after mustering an average 167/7 against DC on Friday. The likes of Quinton De Kock and Rahul will look to return among runs, while they also boast of a powerful line-up down the order with the likes of Marcus Stoinis and Nicholas Pooran. That they also have a formidable slow bowling lineup in Ravi Bishnoi and Krunal Pandya will pose some tough questions for KKR batters. Teams (from): Kolkata Knight Riders: Shreyas Iyer (c), KS Bharat, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Rinku Singh, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Sherfane Rutherford, Manish Pandey, Andre Russell, Nitish Rana, Venkatesh Iyer, Anukul Roy, Ramandeep Singh, Varun Chakravarthy, Sunil Narine, Vaibhav Arora, Chetan Sakariya, Harshit Rana, Suyash Sharma, Mitchell Starc, Dushmantha Chameera, Sakib Hussain and Mujeeb Ur Rahman. Lucknow Super Giants: KL Rahul (c), Quinton de Kock, Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, Kyle Mayers, Marcus Stoinis, Deepak Hooda, Devdutt Padikkal, Ravi Bishnoi, Naveen-ul-Haq, Krunal Pandya, Yudhvir Singh, Prerak Mankad, Yash Thakur, Amit Mishra, Shamar Joseph, Mayank Yadav, Mohsin Khan, K. Gowtham, Arshin Kulkarni, M. Siddharth, Ashton Turner, Matt Henry and Mohd Arshad Khan. Match Starts: 3.30 pm.