Shreyas Iyer was an elated captain as Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) registered an emphatic seven-wicket victory over Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in Match 10 of the IPL 2024 season at the Chinnaswamy Stadium on Friday (March 29).
Riding on Virat Kohli’s 83 not out off 59 balls, the hosts posted 182/6 on the board after being asked to bat first. Cameron Green (33 off 21) and Dinesh Karthik (20 off 8) also chipped in with handy contributions.
In reply, KKR’s opening duo of Sunil Narine (47 off 22) and Philip Salt (30 off 20) made a mockery of RCB’s bowling attack, adding 86 runs in just 6.3 overs.
After their dismissals, the likes of Venkatesh Iyer (50 off 30) and Shreyas Iyer (39* off 24) stepped up and took the visitors over the line in just 16.5 overs.
Following the win, KKR skipper Shreyas Iyer heaped praise on star all-rounder Andre Russell’s bowling prowess against RCB, saying that his variations were spot-on.
Russell was the pick of the Kolkata bowlers as he picked up two wickets by conceding only 29 runs in his four overs. Cameron Green and Rajat Patidar were his victims.
With this stunning spell, Russell also achieved the milestone of 100 wickets for KKR. He became just the second bowler after compatriot Sunil Narine (183 wickets) to reach the 100-wicket mark for the Kolkata-based franchise.
“Russell showed slower ones are good here and the way he executed them were pleasing to see. He was spot on with his variations and slower balls. From there on, the rest of the bowlers picked up on that and made that their plans. The communication was brilliant,” said Shreyas at the post-match presentation.
Commenting on KKR’s utilization of Sunil Narine as an opening batter, Shreyas said the West Indian just had one job and that was to hit the boundary. Narine’s whirlwind knock at the top included two boundaries and five sixes.
“See Narine when he comes in, he has one job that is to clear the outfield and get maximum runs. Today was a phenomenal example. We were contemplating today whether to open with him or not, but this was great,” the KKR captain added.
It was KKR’s second successive victory in the ongoing IPL. They are currently holding the second spot on the points table, featuring 10 teams.
Kolkata Knight Riders will next face Delhi Capitals in Visakhapatnam on Wednesday (April 3).
