Varun Chakravarthy was the Player of the Match for his 3 for 13. (Photo: Courtesy KKR Facebook page)
Abu Dhabi: Kolkata Knight Riders started off their IPL 2021 second half campaign in style as the beat Royal Challengers Bangalore by nine wickets (with 60 balls remaining), here on Monday. Impressed with his team's performance, KKR skipper Eoin Morgan said that it's a right start and his team need that run of confidence.
"Very rarely do you perform as well as we have today. The talent we have within our squad, it counts for nothing. You have to still go out and show how strong you are and we did today. I didn't think the wicket changed a great deal. RCB started well, but taking a wicket at the backend of the PP changed things for us. Collectively, we took valuable wickets. Maxwell, AB, Virat - we managed to get on top of all of them, it's very rare as well. As a group, with the expressive nature with which the guys play, should be an absolute treat. We're not going to knock people for playing their shots. We have a long way to go, need a lot of things to go right. Today's the right start, need that run of confidence. We haven't turned up for the majority of the tournament, but today was a great start," said Morgan.
Meanwhile, RCB captain Virat Kohli said that it was a bit of wake up call for his team. "Was important to get a good partnership. We didn't expect that much dew to kick in that early. From 42 for 1, we lost 5 wickets for 20-odd. Bit of a wake-up call, might as well have this at the start of the second leg so that we know what we should work on," he said.
"You can make the argument that we were rusty but as professionals you're expected to turn up and adjust. Sometimes it can take you a game, I hope not two, to get into the tournament, you have to stay with the eight-ball, if you're not, the other teams will be all over you. Pretty good from Varun, he's going to be a key factor when he plays for India. It's great guys who've got the opportunity to play at the international level. He's someone who is going to play in the near future for India, it's a great sign. We have five win from eight, we expect a loss here and there, it's part and parcel, need to be professional, stick to our strengths and execute our plans. We have absolute confidence in our squad to pull up next game onwards and put in strong performances," added Kohli
Varun Chakravarthy, who was the Player of the Match for his 3 for 13, said, "When I have the ball in my hand, I try to assess the pitch. It was flat. Credit to the bowlers for bowling well in the Power Play. I like to set it up for the bowlers who come on after me. There wasn't much spin on offer, so I had to keep my line on the stumps only. Playing for India has made me feel better. I have a sense of acceptance from people around me because I started at 26."
