IPL 2023: ‘What was that, completely avoidable shot’ – Gavaskar BLASTS KKR skipper Nitish Rana in RCB tie

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) defeated the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) by a whopping 81-run margin in their first home game of IPL 2023, on Thursday evening (April 06). After a five-run loss (DLS method), to Punjab Kings (PBKS) in their season-opener, Nitish Rana-led KKR made a spirited comeback from reeling at 89 for 5 to post 204/7 and dismissed RCB for a paltry 123 in 17.4 overs.

While KKR spinners — Sunil Narine (2 for 16), Varun Chakaravarthy (4 for 15) and Suyash Sharma (3 for 30) — starred with the ball by sharing nine scalps, it was pace-bowling all-rounder Shardul Thakur who set the game with a blistering 29-ball 68 and also returned with 1 for 15. After the flop show of KKR’s top order, Shardul went bonkers from one end and stitched a match-winning 103-run stand with Rinku Singh (33-ball 46). 

KKR eventually won by a huge margin with Nitish Rana marshelling his troops nicely, he was slammed by Little Master Sunil Gavaskar for his poor shot selection. The KKR stand-in captain managed a 5-ball 1 after he went for a reversen sweep, off Michael Bracewell, when his side was already reduced to 46 for 2 after six overs and was in need for a big partnership. Thus, Gavaskar slammed Rana and said on-air, “What kind of shot was that from KKR captain? He didn’t connect at all. And as a captain, I think that shot was completely avoidable.”

After winning his first game as an IPL skipper, Rana will breathe a sigh of relief. However, he will be wary of the fact that KKR needs big runs from him in order to keep going ahead in the tournament.

At the post-match presentation, Rana said on Thursday evening, “In the previous match, there were a lot of positives. We were seven down but still we fought. Today we showed great fight. Gurbaz played a brilliant knock at the top of the order and Thakur changed the complexion of the game. Credit should also be given to Rinku as he played second fiddle to Thakur and paced his innings well. Umesh and Southee started decently with the ball. Then, our spinners bowled really well. Taking wickets regularly was great for us. Suyash is a confident young man and he has belief in himself. He made his chance count and it was great to see him bowl that way.”

KKR will next face the defending champions Gujarat Titans (GT) in Ahmedabad on Sunday afternoon (April 09).