Kolkata Knight Riders beat Sanju Samson’s Rajasthan Royals to break a five-game losing streak. The Indian middle-order pair of Nitish Rana and Rinku Singh kept their spirits up till the end and secured a crucial victory.
Rinku Singh (left) of Kolkata Knight Riders. Credits: PTI
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- KKR won the match by a margin of seven runs
- KKR need to win all their remaining matches to qualify for the playoffs
- Shreyas Iyer was happy with the performance of the team
Kolkata Knight Riders captain Shreyas Iyer lauded Rinku Singh for his brilliant effort against Rajasthan Royals on Monday evening, May 2. Singh, who scored an unbeaten 42 off just 23 balls, was the prime reason behind Kolkata’s win in the evening. He put on a crucial 66-run partnership with Nitish Rana and put Kolkata on the line with five balls to spare.
Speaking after the game, KKR captain Shreyas Iyer said that Rinku’s ability to remain calm even in tough conditions is excellent and she will be a great asset to the franchise in future.
‘A great asset’
“I was talking to my teammates in the dressing room and was like, the way he keeps his cool even in pressure situations playing his second or third game, he is excellent. In that situation with Nitish Rana in that position. Building partnerships is something we should admire and he is a huge asset to the future of the franchise. The way he has started from the first game, he doesn’t look like a new player in the team,” Iyer said. said.
Iyer heaped praise on KKR’s bowling attack, especially Umesh Yadav, who has been in excellent form in the current edition of the Indian Premier League.
Iyer said that Umesh’s tough length has troubled the opposition batsmen as well as the KKR team in the nets, and his plans have been exceptional throughout the season.
“The way he is bowling such tough lengths, he has definitely picked up his pace. It is really difficult to bat against him in the nets. He has a set of plans that are really hard to read. As a captain, you just have to give him the ball and he is always ready to execute things,” Iyer said of his Indian pacer.
Iyer said that KKR will have to improve the top order as the middle order will not be able to save them every day. Iyer said the openers will have to perform in the remaining matches if KKR are to stay in the race for the playoffs this season.
Currently, KKR are at the seventh position in the IPL table with eight points from 10 matches.