Kolkata Knight Riders have faced a string of losses in the tosses during this IPL season, but their ability to clinch crucial victories remains undiminished, stated skipper Shreyas Iyer after their latest triumph that propelled them to the summit of the points table.
Despite Iyer losing his eighth toss out of 11 matches, it didn't impact the team's performance as KKR posted a formidable total of 235 for six after being asked to bat first by Lucknow Super Giants.
Under Iyer's captaincy, the team then restricted the hosts to a mere 137 runs, maintaining their momentum towards securing a playoff berth.
“The last 6 matches in the dressing room there has been havoc, teammates are coming in and asking skip what’s happening, we are losing tosses, but we are winning games that’s what matters,” remarked Iyer during the post-match presentation.
"We had a fantastic start in the powerplay. The left-right batting combination creates challenges for the opposition. Our focus is on playing with freedom and expressing ourselves on the field.
“We had a great start in the powerplay. A lefty-righty combination makes thing difficult for the opposition. It’s all about the freedom, to go out and express themselves.
“We want to go out and be positive whatever the situation is, sometimes it doesn’t work out but sometimes it does.” Opener Sunil Narine's blistering unbeaten knock of 81 runs off 39 deliveries set the stage for a comprehensive victory before the bowlers sealed the deal.
Lucknow Super Giants need to win all their remaining three matches to stay in contention for a playoff spot, a situation that captain KL Rahul believes will galvanize his team.
“We’ve made a couple of mistakes when we’ve come up against batters like Sunil and anyone that’s powerful. That type of intimidation puts pressure on our bowlers. That’ll be the chat once we get back to the dressing room – move on from this game, see where we went wrong and try and get better.
“This is our last home game for us, so we are on the road for the next three games. It’s pretty clear for us, if you want to get to the top four, you got to win all the games. That will give us a little bit of freedom to go out there and be a little bit more fearless, little bit brave to take on the game,” emphasized Rahul.
