IPL 2018 | Nitish Rana's silly dismissal changed the course of the game, says Dinesh Karthik
KKR skipper Dinesh Karthik rued Nitish Rana's unfortunate dismissal and called it the turning point of the game which led to their loss in last night’s qualifier against SRH. Rashid Khan starred with the bat, the ball as well as in the field to lead his team to victory and the IPL final.
Eden Gardens had always been a fortress for Shahrukh Khan’s Kolkata Knight Riders ever since they called it home in the first edition of the Indian Premier League in 2008 which is why many of the critics and cricket analysts picked the home team to beat visitors, Sunrisers Hyderabad in yesterday’s crucial qualifier. But after a decent performance with the ball and strong opening with the bat, KKR skipper Dinesh Karthik and fans alike are still in shock as to how they managed to lose the game at the end of the night.
Skipper Dinesh Karthik was less than amused after last night’s batting display by the middle order batsmen as he pointed out the silly dismissal of number three batsman, Nitish Rana as the turning point of their innings which led to their unfortunate downfall.
"Rana's wicket changed the course of the game. If he had pushed at that stage, the game could have been ours. It was a silly dismissal and very crucial at that stage. Robin Uthappa played a poor stroke and I think he will also admit that it was not a great shot at that stage," Karthik said to PTI.
After opener Sunil Narine’s dismissal, the home team were going great as they were 87/1 before Afghanistan spinner Rashid Khan triggered a collapse in the ninth over with a fine throw from deep mid-wicket to dismiss Rana for 22. Rashid had earlier done some massive damage with the bat as he smashed 34 runs off just 10 deliveries in the last two overs of the first innings to lead his team to a competitive total of 174. Karthik credited Rashid for his impressive display when it mattered last night but he also backed his players to have played the dangerous spinner relatively well throughout the course of the tournament.
"Till now we have actually played him well, during the two times that he has bowled to us, we batted well against him. The whole context of Rashid Khan is the way we approach him, you know in a very positive way, which is good. He had a brilliant day, didn't he? He batted really well, he fielded well; he had a
"Today, because he got a couple of wickets, he is a quality bowler, and on a day when he is bowling well and gets a couple of wickets, it is not surprising. But till now, I think to be fair to KKR, we have played him pretty decently," Karthik said.
