NEWS
Follow UsLucknow Super Giants (LSG) won the toss and opted to field first at their home in Lucknow against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on April 5 (Sunday). It was the only decision that really went in their favour on the night, where the inexperience of their bowling unit came to the forefront with the onslaught from Phil Salt and Sunil Narine.
In the first six over stage, KKR’s opening pair, Salt (32) and Narine demolished the hosts, scoring 70 runs. Since then, the hosts were always playing catch-up to KKR, as the game slipped away. In the post-match presentation, LSG’s skipper, KL Rahul, pointed out that their bowlers were unable to handle Narine’s pressure.
"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 this pressure,” Rahul said in the post-match presentation.
“That's how the IPL is. You will come against good players and that's when you will be tested. 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,” Rahul added.
KKR’s skipper Shreyas Iyer applauded the opening pair, stating that they have been phenomenal this season, with 553 runs in between them, averaging 50.3 and striking at 209.5, blowing the opponents away.
“To be honest, we don't assess the total from the first few overs. Anything close to 200 is a great score, whatever we got after that was extra. Great start by both openers, they have been phenomenal. We have to be flexible with left-right combination, bowlers have to change their approach with this, as this plays into bowlers' mind,” Iyer said in the post-match presentation.
It wasn’t just the openers but also the uncapped duo of Angkrish Raghuvanshi (32) and Ramandeep Singh, who scored a sizzling 25 off six deliveries, something that transcended KKR’s target well beyond the 230-run mark.
“It's all about freedom (for uncapped players), to go out and express. Their mindset is positive. Majority of the time, they have been good. He was splendid. The start from openers have been great. Pure bliss. We just want to keep continuing the momentum so that we get to the great total and be optimistic,” he added.
It was yet another day when all the bowlers succumbed under the pressure of Narine, the opener. The left-hander was yet again at his destructive best, scoring a 39-ball 81 with six fours and seven sixes.
"I think the most important thing is starting well. Support staff have been backing me. It's been working for me, hope it works for the rest of he tournament,” Narine said in the post-match presentation.
With the ball, too, Narine picked up the crucial wicket of Ayush Badoni, which helped KKR complete a dominating win over LSG. Narine insisted that his partnership with Varun Chakaravarthy has made his job easier.
“It's about picking what you are gonna do on that particular day with your strengths, you have to be smarter. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. It's going very well with Varun, he is picking wickets, making my job easier. He is a hard worker."
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