KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane praised SRH’s batting, crediting them for capitalizing on errors and playing good deliveries well. He admitted KKR’s bowling lapses and lauded Klaasen’s brilliance, while reflecting on execution issues in their plans.
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) captain Ajinkya Rahane acknowledged the strong batting performance from Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), highlighting their ability to capitalise on errors and execute well against good deliveries.
He credited the SRH batters for their intent. He mentioned the team's discussion on bowling strategies, such as slower balls and wider deliveries, but notes that the SRH batters, like Klaasen, played exceptionally well, negating the plans.
KKR skipper admits errors in bowling
KKR endured a forgettable outing on Sunday as they failed to chase down a mammoth target of 279 set by Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, crashing to a 110-run defeat.
"I thought they batted really well, Yes, we made a few errors while bowling. The way they batted, they capitalised on all the loose balls and also hit all the good balls as well. Credit goes to the SRH batters, their intent was really great.
We did discuss about bowling slower balls, bowling wider as well, bowling wide slower balls as well, but sometimes if the bowlers don't execute the plan really well, then batters like Klaasen and all the SRH batters ... they batted really well," Ajinkya Rahane said in the post-match presentation.
Rahane on team's execution
Rahane also spoke about the execution part and errors throughout the innings as a bowling unit.
"We were short on our execution part, but also made a lot many errors throughout the innings as a bowling unit. Throughout the season, we had our moments, we had our chances, 2-3 close games, which we thought we didn't play well as a team, as a unit. Apart from that, we tried our best, we gave our best. A format like this, you got to be switched on every time. T
his format is really tough, this IPL is really tough. As a team, we had those chances, we had those moments, we would have been probably number one or two in the table. But, no regrets, lots to learn from this season. All the players tried their best, gave their best. We'll come back really stronger next year," he added.
KKR ends IPL season on a good note
The loss ended KKR's season on a disappointing note, placing them eighth in the table with five wins, seven losses, and one no result. SRH, meanwhile, climbed to sixth with six wins, seven losses, and one no result.
Sunrisers Hyderabad's bowling attack was led by a trio of effective performers -- Jaydev Unadkat, Eshan Malinga, and Harsh Dubey -- all of whom picked up three wickets each to dismantle KKR's batting line-up.