IPL 2023, RCB vs KKR | Who said what ft. Varun Chakaravarthy, Nitish Rana
Kolkata Knight Riders finally scripted positive results on Wednesday after losing four matches in a row winning against Royal Challengers Bangalore by 21 runs. Varun Chakaravarthy revealed that he has been working more on accuracy than variations while Nitish Rana lauded the collective team effort.
At a venue known for its run-scoring, Kolkata Knight Riders tasted victory thanks to the top-order mayhem caused by them. KKR were invited to bat first by Royal Challengers Bangalore in the fixture and Jason Roy provided them with a blistering start with a knock of 56 runs from 29 balls. Nitish Rana also smacked the ball to all parts of the ground as he survived after the opposition provided two lifelines with a couple of dropped catches. Rinku Singh and David Wiese provided the finishing touches and the team posted a total of 200/5.Â
Defending the total, KKR dismissed RCB batters at regular intervals with Varun Chakarvarthy leading the charge. Chakaravarthy picked three scalps while Suyash Sharma and Andre Russell contributed with a couple of wickets. RCB were restricted to 179/8 in the end and the visitors won by 21 runs.Â
Reflecting on the match result, Varun Chakaravarthy dedicated his performance to his son and also lauded youngster Suyash Sharma for his performance.
Last match I went for 49 and this match I did well. That's how crazy life is. (This year) More focused on accuracy rather than more variations. I didn't want to add more variations. I have been working a lot and I'd like to credit AC Pratheepan - he's been working for me and even Abhishek Nayar. I'd like to thank them.I'd like to credit this to my new born son, still not able to see him, I'd like to dedicate it to him and my wife.Suyash Sharma has come into the team and I could say that he’s a guy for the future of the country. He is an amazing talent. I wish he can understand the level of cricket we are playing and fasttrack his way to the county’s side.
KKR skipper Nitish Rana praised the collective effort displayed by the team against RCB.
Last 3-4 matches I've been saying the same thing at the toss - if we play well collectively, result will be in our favour. You need a lot of character in the dressing room to give a performance like this in our situation. The belief has always been there that we'll bounce back. We wanted to put a score on the board. Felt like it would turn in the second innings because there wasn't much dew. It didn't turn a lot but we bowled well.
Andre Russell admitted that he has been patchy with the bat but will return stronger in the upcoming fixtures.
We really needed that victory. Have been under the pump last couple of games. Batting first tonight, we know once we get a good total on the board - runs on the board is pressure. Our goal was to keep their powerplay under 55. We were able to pull it back in the middle. Batting first or batting second comes down to the amount of runs you're setting up, and the dew factor. Once I get the ball I try to do my best. Have been struggling in patches with the bat. Still confident, still know what to do.
RCB captain Virat Kohli admitted that the team deserved to lose as they handed victory to the opposition with the batters hitting the balls to the fielder.Â
To be honest we handed them the game. We did deserve to lose. We handed them a victory. We were certainly not up to standard. If you look at the game, we didn't capitalize our chances. We dropped a few chances which cost us 25-30 runs. We set up ourselves really well. We ended up hitting the fielder to balls which weren't wicket taking. It is what's on the scoreboard and how to get them. Even while chasing, despite losing wickets we were one partnership away from being in the game. We needed one partnership to get us home. We need to be switched on and not give away soft plays.