Nitish Rana’s rescue act scoring a 34-ball 57 was not enough as Kolkata Knight Riders lost to Delhi Capitals by four wickets at the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai on Thursday.
A bowling all-rounder from Ghevra, Delhi, who loves to bat, Rana is known for his express pace and is currently the fastest bowler in the KKR squad.
A promising left-arm mystery spinner and a hard-hitting batter, in the mold of Sunil Narine, Kumar is a product of tennis-ball cricket stardom and is often recognised by his moniker, ‘Narine Jalalabadia’.
Both sides will have their sights set on a win to have any hope of making it to the playoffs.
An aggressive left-handed opener, Singh has been the Railways’ leading run-scorer in white-ball domestic cricket since his T20 debut in 2019.
Having made his first-class debut for Tamil Nadu aged 18, he has gone on to rise as a dependable batter as well as a captain at various ages.
With six games to go, Iyer is confident the side can turn the season around and challenge for a spot at the Qualifiers with an added incentive of playing in home conditions at the Eden Gardens.
"I think we have shown some fighting characteristics but unfortunately, we ran second in a close contest.”
Andre Russell’s all-round efforts which included a four-wicket final over and a 25-ball 48 were not enough as the Kolkata Knight Riders suffered an eight run loss against Gujarat Titans at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai on Saturday.
Coming on the back off a four-day break, they would be raring to get back to winning ways at the Wankhede Stadium, a venue they have won both their fixtures at.
Languid and easy on the eyes with his shots, the 27-year-old made waves by top-scoring for Rajasthan in the Vijay Hazare trophy, India’s domestic List A tournament last year, hitting 333 runs at an average of 66.60.
"Everyone feels at home when they walk in here, it’s just something special. It’s a franchise I have got plenty of friends at and I have always admired how the team is ran."
Half-centuries from Aaron Finch and Shreyas Iyer for the Kolkata Knight Riders went in vain as Rajasthan Royals, riding on the back of a Jos Buttler century and Yuzvendra Chahal’s hattrick and a five-wicket haul, held their nerve to seal a thrilling seven-run victory in the last over.
On Monday (April 18), the West Inndian mystery spinner Sunil Narine is set to play his 150th game for Kolkata Knight Riders, completing ten years with the franchise. We spoke to him about his journey, the moments that stood out and his aspirations going forward
