SRH vs KKR | Player Ratings - Kolkata Knight Riders batsmen fail to capitalise on batting conditions as SRH secure easy win
Being asked to bat first, Kolkata Knight Riders batsmen’s failure to capitalise on the batting-friendly conditions cost them the game against SRH. Chris Lynn played a sluggish innings while other batsmen failed to convert emphatic starts into big scores as they succumbed to a nine-wicket defeat.
Sunil Narine (6/10): A start like that can push any opposition on the backfoot right at the outset and the best part about Sunil Narine’s cameo was his cool and composed head. He hardly gets bogged down and his runs at the top is no less than a bonus for KKR. His vulnerability against the short pitched deliveries are well-known and SRH bowlers did bowl short at him, but he counter-attacked with some flair. With the ball, Narine couldn’t do much as SRH openers didn’t spare any bowler and took them for cleaners.
Chris Lynn (5.5/10): It is true that a lot of KKR’s success depends on the way Chris Lynn fares at the top, but not at this strike rate. Although his innings was a little sluggish, it would be cruel to blame Lynn as wickets kept tumbling at the other end and no batsmen really provided the brisk support. This was easily his slowest IPL fifty.
Shubman Gill (2/10): Barring that scintillating fifty against Delhi Capitals, Shubman Gill has not really made a mark this season with the bat. He squandered a golden opportunity to make an immediate impact and cement the No. 3 spot in the absence of Robin Uthappa. Opportunity doesn’t knock your door twice, it needs to grabbed the moment it knocks and Gill would certainly be disappointed by missing out on a big one.
Nitish Rana (2/10): Why Rana, why? This was probably the question that sprung in many KKR fans when Rana nicked one while trying to guide the ball down the third man. He has been one of their most impactful batsmen, his performances have been overshadowed a lot due to the presence of other international stars, but his performance today was rather ordinary. The surface looked conducive for batting and Rana was also coming fresh from a gigantic knock against RCB, he could have easily posed a threat today, but only bagged 11 runs from as many deliveries to leave KKR in hot water.
Dinesh Karthik (2/10): With the world Cup spot already sealed, Dinesh Karthik’s focus was indubitably channelised on the IPL. He took guard when KKR were precariously placed at 65 for 3 and needed to steady the KKR ship with a captain’s innings, but it wasn’t to be. While sneaking a second run, in a rush of blood, perhaps, Karthik underestimated Vijay Shankar’s athleticism on the field which eventually resulted in his demise. His captaincy was rather mediocre where he made a couple of tactical blunders including Russell's batting position.
Rinku Singh (6/10): Picked as a replacement of Uthappa, the pressure was always there on Rinku Singh to perform. After a sluggish start, Rinku finally shifted gears but couldn’t do much after being caught off Sandeep Sharma’s bowling. He did calm the harakiri down, but with Russell to come in next, he could have opted to go hard an over earlier than he eventually did.
Andre Russell (7/10): The Caribbean giant has been the talk of the town for his manic form and monstrous hitting this season. If there was any man, SRH had to be wary off, it was Andre Russell. But the question is - did KKR make a tactical error in sending Russell so lower down the order? It does not need any rocket science to figure out that your best batsman needs to face as many deliveries as possible, which was certainly not the case with KKR. He looked unstoppable and has been in the form of his life, then why shouldn’t he bat at 4 or 5? He faced just 9 deliveries in this innings, scoring 15 with two powerful sixes and was dismissed when a low full toss was mistimed towards cow corner.
KC Cariappa (2.5/10): With Russell gone, KKR’s hope of squeezing any runs in the final over were shattered but Cariappa had other ideas. Up against Rashid Khan, Cariappa provided that mental edge to KKR by smashing a six in the final over. However, he failed terribly with the ball as there was no control, line and length was just too erratic and didn’t have enough options to put brakes on SRH batsmen.
Piyush Chawla (1/10): Conceding five dots in the 19th over with a hard-hitting Andre Russell at the other end is bound to attract criticism. Instead of playing fancy shots, Chawla could have opted to sneak a single here and there and get the batsman on strike. To add to his woes, he dropped a simple catch of Bairstow and lacked the confidence with the ball. His figures of 38 in three overs speaks about his ineffectiveness while defending a modest total of 160.
Harry Gurney (5/10): This kind of surface was more likely to suit Gurney’s style of bowling. He rarely bowled a quick delivery and backed his stock deliveries to contain the batsman, which kind of worked after looking at the eventual result of the match. Gurney just bowled two overs for 16 as SRH chased down the total with five overs to spare.
Yarra Prithviraj (5/10): What could have been a memorable debut, turned out to be an expensive over for Prithvi Raj. This is exactly how uncertain the game of cricket get. He almost got the better of Jonny Bairtsow in his very first over, but a wobble on the boundary from Cariappa resulted in a boundary. It looked like luck has turned its back on the bowler when the same batsman was again dropped by Chawla later. But the lanky bowler fought his battle hard and eventually earned a result when he cleaned up Warner with a slower one.
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