Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) skipper Nitish Rana defended his decision to play the reverse sweep on the very first ball of Michael Bracewell post-power play against Faf du Plessis-led RCB. The 29-year-old was widely criticised for his shot selection against the off-spinner on his very first delivery.
Speaking to the media, in the post-match press conference, Nitish Rana said that it was unfortunate to get out in that manner, but believes that is his style of play and slammed the critics as it is easier to comment from outside.
“It wasn’t unfortunate. That’s the way I bat. It’s very easy to say from the outside. If I am sitting outside and watching someone else’s match, anyone can say after a mistake that I have made a mistake. It was my shot and I have always played my cricket this way,” Nitish Rana said.
Kolkata Knight Riders Credits: TwitterEarlier, Sunil Gavaskar criticised the KKR skipper for his rash shot against RCB. Nitish Rana continued that it was important to take on the off-spinner Michael Bracewell in the first over itself so that he doesn’t come into the play and reckoned that his shot would be wrong if he had played during the chase of the match
“If we were chasing, I would have admitted my stroke was the wrong one. I wanted to be aggressive against Michael Bracewell and take on the off-spinner in the first over itself so that he doesn’t come into play. That was the plan.”
Though Kolkata Knight Riders registered their first win in the league stage, they will have a lot of things to address to the top of the order and their power play bowling of the pacers. They will look correct themselves when they take on Gujarat Titans on April 9 in Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad.
It’s Not Easy To Pick Him – Nitish Rana On Suyash Sharma’s Bowling
Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Nitish Rana hailed Suyash Sharma as the X-factor player for the two-time champions in IPL 2023. The 19-year-old made his professional debut for Kolkata Knight Riders bagging impressive three wickets on his IPL debut.
“Suyash Sharma is not a mystery spinner. He’s a normal leg-spinner. But yes, he has an X-factor because his arm speed is very quick. He has an orthodox (unorthodox) action and it’s not easy to pick him,” Nitish Rana added.
Suyash Sharma made his debut as an impact player in place of Venkatesh Iyer in the 2nd innings–and proved his worth straight away in the match as he showed the ability to turn the ball both ways. Varun Chakravarthy, Suyash Sharma, and Sunil Narine damaged the RCB batting lineup picking up 9 wickets for their team.