Cameron Green lauded star batter Virat Kohli for playing a “vintage” innings to keep RCB in the race. File
| Photo Credit: AP

Cameron Green lauded star batter Virat Kohli for playing a “vintage” innings to keep Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the race to the IPL playoffs.

Kohli made full use of the three reprieves, including one on zero, to make a 47-ball 92 that set the tone for their 60-run win over Punjab Kings in a must-win match here on May 9.

“He played the vintage Virat that we all know. It was a beautiful watch from the other end. That’s the beauty of having Virat in your team, as opposition you can’t give him that many chances,” said Green in the post-match press meet.

The Australian all-rounder, who helped himself to a 27-ball 46, said Kohli was trying to be aggressive and the drops did not affect him.

“He’s always going to make you hurt, especially if you drop him three or four times. Early in his innings, he was trying to be really aggressive. I think he looked like after a couple of dropped catches, he didn’t have much to lose,” added Green.

The Bengaluru side still need to win their remaining two matches against Delhi Capitals and Chennai Super Kings at home to remain in the mix for playoffs.

Green said the team has done well to win four matches on the bounce after a string of defeats.

“Yeah, I think what we’ve done really well is just look at the next game. I think obviously at the start of the tournament you can always look further at what’s coming up, where are we on the table.”

“But I think that’s the beauty of where we were at (now), we kind of were pushed into a corner and all we could really do was focus on the next game,” he added

Meanwhile, Punjab Kings assistant coach Brad Haddin blamed the dropped catches for his side’s defeat.

The Kings let-off Kohli and Green more than once and they bruised them with quickfire knocks as RCB posted a tall 241 for seven.

In reply, PBKS could only manage 181 before getting bundled out.

“100 percent we lost the match because of dropped catches. If we look through the game, we dropped two guys on a duck, and both of them scored big runs. That was where the game was lost.

“There was not too much difference in the batting and bowling of both teams. The catches we put down cost us the game,” said Haddin.

 Young pacer Harshit Rana feels Kolkata Knight Riders are reaping the rewards by following the winning template set by two-time IPL winner. File picture
| Photo Credit: Deepak K R

Young pacer Harshit Rana feels Kolkata Knight Riders are reaping the rewards by following the winning template set by two-time IPL winner and current mentor Gautam Gambhir as they continued their sensational run to grab the top position in the IPL points table.

Gambhir had led KKR to the IPL crown twice with the team also qualifying for the playoffs five times during his stint from 2011 to 2017. He had also guided KKR to the finals of the now-defunct Champions League T20 in 2014.

However, in the last seven years, KKR could reach the playoffs only twice.

Gambhir’s return to the KKR camp as a mentor this year turned things around as the Kolkata-based franchise moved to the top of the table with 16 points following a dominating 98-run over Lucknow Super Giants – 8th win in 11 games – on May 6

“Not only this match, this entire season we have been focussing a lot on the style of cricket that Gautam Gambhir wants us to play. He has a lot of knowledge on how to turn games in our favour and it helps us a lot in the middle,” Rana said during the press conference.

“Like today he gave the bowlers a free hand, to find the length to bowl depending on the wicket, and not to try too many things,” he added.

Rana (3/24 in 3.1 overs) played a crucial role in the win by taking three wickets while defending a target of 235.

“KKR read the wicket very well. The areas we had to bowl, we targeted the right places,” Rana said.

IPL’s biggest buy Mitchell Starc has proved expensive this season but Rana said the team management is not at all bothered about his economy rate and has faith on the Australian speedstar.

“We have not cared even for a bit on how expensive Mitchell Starc has been in IPL 2024. He have full faith in him and he won us the last game and we have no doubts on him whatsoever.

“He has such a great influence on the younger players, he has such a huge wealth of knowledge,” Rana said.

Rana said his dream is to play for India and is focussing on his performance.

“My aim is to play for India but whatever franchise I play for I try to give my best on the day of the match. I will be selected based on my performance and performance alone,” Rana said.

We’d our plans but everything went Narine’s way: Naveen

It was yet another sparkling fifty by Sunil Narine (81 off 39) which helped KKR post a massive 235 for six and LSG fast bowler Naveen Ul Haq conceded that all their plans failed against the star West Indian allrounder.

“I think he played quite well. We had a plan of bowling bouncers and yorkers and mixing it up and not being predictable against him. We did that but he played quite a brilliant innings to be honest,” he said.

“It wasn’t like he was slogging and everything was going top edge or anything like slicing the ball. He was properly middling it and that’s the case like from the beginning of the season.

“He’s been middling it. Everything going his way. So yeah, it was a great knock by him.” The Afghan seamer said LSG could have produced a better show with the bat but they can’t dwell on defeat too much as they need to focus on the next game.

“The amount of games that we have played in Lucknow, I think this was the best wicket to bat on. We did not do the things in the chase that we did – say in the game at Chepauk, where the target was very high. It was not like bad or anything, there was nothing for the bowlers,” Naveen said.

“Pressure is always there on whatever score you are chasing. Every team has a bad day, and we cannot keep focusing on that, we have to move on.”

Sunrisers Hyderabad’s Heinrich Klaasen plays a shot during the match against Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Indian Premier League 2024, at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on April 25, 2024.
| Photo Credit: ANI

The Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), which is having one of its more fruitful seasons in the cash-rich domestic league with five wins from eight matches, entered the IPL record books for the most number of sixes hit in a single season, at 100. The feat was achieved during the clash with the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on April 25.

Though the Sunrisers went down to Bengaluru on April 25, tasting only their third defeat this IPL season, they posted the unique record for clearing the fence the most times in a single season. The Sunrisers have lit up the ongoing 17th season of the gilded, cash-rich domestic T20 league with their batting fireworks, with the likes of Aussie dasher Travis Head and his opening partner Abhishek Sharma, and Heinrich Klaasen, who has emerged as the team’s middle-order bulwark this season, flattening rival attacks with their ferocious assaults. The Hyderabad-based franchise achieved the landmark of striking 100 sixes in just their eighth match in the ongoing IPL season.Even in the 2022 season, the Sunrisers raised hopes of achieving the landmark but fell agonisingly short at 97 sixes.

Earlier, on April 25, the RCB won the toss and elected to bat first. Skipper Faf Du Plessis (25) and Virat Kohli got the team off to a blazing start in the powerplay. After a slowdown in scoring post-powerplay, Rajat Patidar (50) injected fresh impetus into the RCB’s innings.Virat was dismissed for 51 in 43 balls, with four boundaries and a six, failing to capitalise on his fine start during the powerplay. Despite some quick wickets, cameos from Cameron Green (37*) and Swapnil Singh (12*) took RCB to 206/7 in their 20 overs. Jaydev Unadkat (3/30) and T Natrajan (2/39) were the top bowlers for SRH.

Pat Cummins and Mayank Markande took a wicket each. In the run-chase, SRH kept losing wickets at regular intervals. Except for Abhishek Sharma (31), none of the previous heroes for SRH, be it Travis Head, Heinrich Klaasen, or Nitish Reddy made an impact. Skipper Cummins (31) and Shahbaz Ahmed (40) did put up a fight, but SRH was skittled out for 171 in their 20 overs. Green (2/12) and Karn Sharma (2/29) were the top bowlers for RCB. Swapnil Singh also took two wickets for 40 runs. Will Jacks and Yash Dayal also got a wicket each. RCB is at the bottom of the points table with two wins, seven losses and four points. SRH is at the third spot with five wins, three losses and 10 points.