Knight Riders playing true to their potential has come in a bit too late, but better late
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00:00Every time we say that we have seen a superlative match, an exciting match, and every week or every two weeks, we see another thriller.
00:08And today was one of those matches. To be very honest, 3 overs, 55 runs. You wouldn't back KKR to do it.
00:22Hello, everyone. This is Straight Bad with Golf News and Mr. Cricket UAE. That is Anish Sarjan.
00:28We are here to discuss a thriller in Mumbai, What a Cracker of the Match.
00:33Without further ado, let me go over to Anish Sarjan to take us through the thrilling moments of the match.
00:39Thank you, Shyam. Hello, Satish. Hello, Maaz.
00:42Every time we say that we have seen a superlative match, an exciting match, and every week or every two weeks, we see another thriller.
00:50And today was one of those matches. To be very honest, 3 overs, 55 runs. You wouldn't back KKR to do it.
00:56But came Rinku Singh and Sunil Narayanan. It just turned the game. And that catch of Evan Lewis, I read on a post which says that it was a gold medal catch, I believe, is the catch of all the 15 IPLs.
01:07And that turned the game. Otherwise, KKR would have been still hoping that they would qualify. But you have to give it to Lucknow. 220 without a loss. 210 without a loss. They deserve to win.
01:18Satish, this is rather strange, isn't it? You have a fabulous knock of 140 by Quinton De Kock. Then you have some wonderful innings by Nitish Rana, Shreyas Iyer, and Bin Sambeling, and Rinku Singh, and even Sunil Narayanan.
01:36But in the end, one catch decided the match.
01:43That's the way it is, Shyam. For no reason, they don't say that catches win matches. And here, I would slightly blame Rinku Singh. He played a brilliant knock.
01:53But when you needed 3 runs of 2 balls, I would prefer to play it much more safer than going for these big shots of a 6.
02:02You can go for a half-arched shot which could either get you a 2 or a 3. But it won't reach the fielder. So you could have checked your shots instead of going full hog.
02:12That's where the inexperience comes. But again, he has to learn. See, this is a big stage. He is an experienced player in the domestic league. But the level of pressure here is different.
02:23But still, I would have said, if he had played that ball sensibly, maybe Kolkata could have gone. And things could have been a lot better because it then opens up the entire table.
02:33Absolutely, you are spot-on. Because this is what they call a brain-fade. Because in the heat of the moment, you stop thinking. You go for the glory shot and this is what happens.
02:45I mean, this wouldn't happen to somebody like Mahesh Dhoni or any of those people. Even a single would have made things easier. Because in the end, if there was only one ball and one run, it would have still pushed the match into a super-over.
03:02But here, they went for the glory shot. But Miles, you have nothing to be ashamed of. You guys ran out of it. But you ran out of it bravely. Give us your thoughts.
03:14What a way to end this season, to be honest. It was a season of ups and downs for us. But the way we played today showed the character of every player.
03:23I think the captaincy of Shreyas Iyer has been very impressive throughout the season. So I would say we have got a good captain after Gautam Gambhir, who can take us to more playoffs in the future.
03:36I think the biggest upset for us this season would be our opening batting and also the second spinner. Sunil Narahana has been very, very good. The economy of under-6 is phenomenal. But the second spinner, Varun Chakravorty or even Anmol Singh or Anmolpreet whatever, we didn't have that perfect second spinner.
03:57So those are the two big upsets according to me. Otherwise, it has been a very, very good season with the bat apart from the opening and the ball as well. And a great captaincy.
04:07And as Satish Sir said, that one catch catches in matches. And also, Direnko Singh could have played it better today. I mean, Anil uncle always says, the youngsters go for the glory shot. But not everyone can finish off in style like MS Dhoni.
04:22So that's where I think we lost the match. But nothing to take away from Ewan Lewis. What a brilliant catch.
04:29Absolutely, absolutely. What a brilliant catch. I mean, he went sliding it. I thought the ball would pop off actually. Because he landed hard and his kid did through.
04:37Coming back, Anil, it's 20 for no loss in 20 overs. Did you ever think that Kolkata would make it back into the match?
04:47I will be very honest. So you know what, IPL defies all cricketing logic. I had told my son go to sleep because he's a very big KKR fan. He said, no dad, KKR will still come in.
04:56And then we lost two couple of wickets. Even though they had a partnership between Shreyas and Nitish Rana, I said, there's no chance.
05:03I always believed that they have won that X-Factor player, Dre Rez. And he also had a poor match with the bat as well as with the ball.
05:10Even he got out. You would never give any chance to KKR. And then suddenly strange things happened. Just Rinku Singh, I don't know what he ate.
05:18And Sunil Narayan, he's like this up and down. And the match changed in a span of time. And when three runs required of two balls, you would then say KKR is going to win.
05:27Absolutely. And he just puts his hand up and the ball sticks in his hand.
05:32That is the only thing he did in the match.
05:36You know what? I seriously say, we cannot be strategic. Because I remember the pitch report given by the guy who said, this is going to be a rank turner.
05:47The team batting fence, if they put 160, 165, it's going to win. There was not one ball which turned. Everything was going out of the park.
05:55Absolutely. Especially when Lucknow were batting. They were batting on different servers.
06:04Satheesh, coming back to that superb partnership between KL Rahul and Quintin De Kock. Forget the two catches.
06:13Of course, catches have happened. Every team drops catches. But beyond that, tell us something about that.
06:20Because what could Kolkata have done anything different?
06:25No, I don't think they could have done anything different, Cham.
06:29Because Quintin De Kock is a player. He is a class player. It's just that he was not firing so far.
06:34But I think the good thing with him is, he is fired today and he has taken it to the end.
06:40And of course, again, if you look at the match, the last three overs, I think, Kolkata gave away something like 65 runs in three overs.
06:50True. True.
06:52So, maybe that's where you could have thought it better and could have avoided something.
06:58Then they wouldn't have chased such a big target. That again, maybe Kolkata had a brain freeze as bowlers from that point of time.
07:05I fail to understand how they could do that. Yes, they didn't have enough wickets. That's fine. It's still no-loss.
07:14You can still bowl yorker deliveries. You can still curtail the runs. Here, the runs were going… It was flooding. The runs were going in floods.
07:24Absolutely. Deluge out there.
07:27Deluge there. So, that way, I think that's where they missed it. But all of a sudden, I don't think we had such a very good high-scoring game.
07:38These were low-scoring thrillers we had in the past. This one was a welcome change because it was a good fight between the bat and the ball, I would say.
07:46Yes. Till the last ball, we didn't know who is going to win. Which is the beauty of this game.
07:52Okay. Coming back to Maya. Tell us, what is happening to Varun Chakravorty? He was your trump card for the last two seasons.
08:00And here, he is struggling.
08:03To be honest, even I don't know what has happened. I mean, he didn't have a very good World Cup as well in Dubai. He hasn't been in form recently.
08:13So, I think even in the mental space, he doesn't have much of a confidence. And I think… I don't know if KK… Apart from Sunil Narayan, of course.
08:23I don't know if KK handles their spinners well. I mean, look at Kuldeep Yadav. He is doing a wonderful job in DC.
08:30But, you know, removing Varun Chakravorty after 4-5 bad performances. I mean, okay, it was… I mean, even I as a fan said that we need to look ahead of him.
08:39But like, maybe we would have given much more chances to him or motivated him because the lack of confidence is what I have seen in Varun Chakravorty.
08:47And same thing has happened with Kuldeep Yadav earlier. So, to be honest, even I don't know what is the problem.
08:53But hopefully, he comes back with a bang next season. And for Team India as well.
08:58Aneesh, do you agree that it's a KKR problem? Because when you look at Sunil Narayan, who had to remodel his action twice, comes back and still holds tight spells.
09:12You know, to some point, I will probably go with Ma's assessment that handling of spinners by KKR management has not been good.
09:19Sunil Narayan is an exception. I mean, I agree that he had to remodel his action and he came back. He didn't have a couple of good years, let's accept it.
09:27But this year, he has been phenomenal. But there is some issue. It's very easy now to put up a brave face, which Shreyas Iyer did.
09:35And to some extent, probably Ma said that you are not disappointed with today's game.
09:39Having said that, their performance in this tournament has been pathetic. We are talking on the basis of this match.
09:45Let's be very honest, Lucknow had everything to lose. KKR had not so much to lose.
09:50Because they still were on the mercy of Delhi and RCB, not reaching 16 points, even if they would have won.
09:55I am not taking anything away from Rinku's innings or Narayan's innings or Rana's innings or Shreyas Iyer's innings.
10:00But KKR, as a whole in this tournament, have been poor.
10:07So they took it close. But in the end, I feel there is some issue in the management.
10:13I mean, we can just make an assessment sitting outside. But you don't chop and change players after every match.
10:20For 3-3, 4-4, players don't get dropped. There is some problem.
10:24I will take it from there. Satish, I will take it from what Anish said. There is a problem there.
10:33And Shreyas let slip once. He even said that the CEO, Venky Mysore, was involved in the team selection.
10:42Then he retracted the statement saying that he stays there with the 12th man and all that.
10:48Shyam, team management has many heads. No doubt about it.
10:53But I think, again, it's about the confidence. They didn't have the confidence going into the tournament.
11:00Maybe the opening slot. Varun Chakraborty, coming back to Varun Chakraborty, I would like to add this.
11:06See, some bowlers like a little lower bounce wickets. Some like higher bounce wickets.
11:12That's exactly what has happened between Kuldeep Yadav and Varun Chakraborty.
11:16In India and Mumbai, the wickets are… The bounce is slightly higher.
11:22So, you have to bowl that particular length which you are comfortable with.
11:26Whereas Varun Chakraborty, maybe he is liking a wicket that is coming lower. So, he is bowling at a different length.
11:32Whereas here, when he bowls that length, the ball is coming much at a higher space where he is getting hit.
11:40So, all this matters, of course.
11:42It can be corrected. I am making as a bowler mistake. Why can't it be corrected? Whose role it is?
11:48That's exactly what my next point is. That's where they missed it.
11:52As Maas said, they should have given Varun Chakraborty or anybody the confidence to go ahead.
11:58Yes. I think it is not there. But I am sure it will get better.
12:04Because what has happened is, you have a new captain who has come in.
12:08And he has come in to a set-up which is already up and running in a particular way.
12:12They have been functioning in a different way.
12:14We don't know who is responsible. Whether it is a McCullum or whether it is a CEO.
12:18Or whether it is Reyes. We don't know.
12:20We can only speculate.
12:22We can only speculate. So, we can't speculate and say things.
12:25But certainly, I am sure they would have learnt a lesson.
12:28They should have played this match number 14 as the first match.
12:31And from there, if they had done that, that would have been a perfect continuation from where they left off last year as a finalist.
12:37At least, they now know where to go and what to do.
12:41And I am sure if they can set right their opening partnership at least,
12:45then I am sure they will be again forced to reckon with like in the past season, which will lag them in good stead.
12:53I am pursuing a rather difficult line here.
12:56I am asking Maas to speculate here.
12:59Because here, we have a problem with Shreyas Iyer saying that the CEO's indifference in the team selection.
13:08In the past, we have seen also Dinesh Karthik stepping down, making way for Arjan Morgan.
13:15Because Arjan Morgan and McCullum are very good friends.
13:20Then also, in the previous years or in the very early years of IPL, we have Shahrukh Khan, the owner, coming and sitting in the box.
13:26And that also had problems with the players.
13:29And people have taken umbrage about why when a person who is not actively playing or involved in the playing process gets into the press box.
13:40So, these are controversies which have dogged Calcutta all along.
13:44So, there is a lot of attention off the field or they make news off the field rather on the field.
13:50So, how do you see these things?
13:53I mean, KKR is, to be honest, a celebrity team.
13:58When a team is owned by a celebrity of that big of a caliber, there is always going to be news of the field.
14:06So, I think that has been used with Punjab Kings as well, with Mumbai Indians because of Ambani.
14:12So, for the Shahrukh Khan thing, I wouldn't agree.
14:15Because in the start of the IPL, the celebrity owners wanted to come and have much more, what do you say, much more involvement in the game.
14:27But coming to Baz and CEO involvement, I think, yeah, Shreyas Iyer spilled it out.
14:34And I think there is some involvement of the CEO in this team selection.
14:39And as you mentioned about Baz and Morgan being good friends.
14:43I mean, last year, Morgan, yeah, he didn't have a good run with the bat.
14:46But if you see on captaincy terms, he has been a very, very good captain for England.
14:51And he took us to the finals.
14:53I wouldn't say that he was the only reason for us reaching the finals last year.
14:57But yeah, of course, the captain plays a big role.
14:59But yeah, chopping down of players after every three, four matches and the involvement of higher officials in the team selection, I think there is some problem there.
15:08So hopefully, Baz is going to England, he stays there and we get a good management next season and all these problems are solved.
15:17And just to come back to the business aspect of Knight Riders.
15:22To me, correct me if I'm wrong, to me, the Knight Riders group is bigger than the Mumbai Indians and the Chennai Super Kings.
15:31Because they have franchises around the world.
15:34They have in, what do you call it?
15:37UPL?
15:38Yeah, Trinbagu, that is in the western league.
15:41They have bought the Abu Dhabi team.
15:43Which means, they are a multinational franchise team.
15:46And you would expect them to have a better, more professional outlook.
15:51What do you say?
15:52If I have to be very blunt and very honest, for some franchises, cricket is business.
15:59It's not about a passion like we all have.
16:02A lot of owners do have passion.
16:04But a lot of owners don't know what is cricket.
16:06For them, it's a business.
16:07When I say business, it's getting revenue out of sponsorship, getting revenue out of broadcasting.
16:13They don't understand the nitty-gritty of the game.
16:17I was just sharing with Satish and Radha Ma's affair that most of the time,
16:24IPL matches, such high franchise cricket matches are lost off the field than one on the field.
16:31And if people can understand what I mean is, a lot of interferences happening,
16:36not giving the players the freedom or giving too much freedom to the players can mess up the whole team.
16:42And that is why there are two owners who have been successful.
16:46You cannot win nine IPL titles out of 14.
16:49There is a reason behind them winning it.
16:51Because they follow a particular pattern which the other franchises have not.
16:54Absolutely.
16:57Now, coming away from Calcutta, Satish, tell us where does this take Lucknow?
17:03Because Lucknow is more or less stitched up.
17:06No, they are qualified, Shyam.
17:08Lucknow is qualified.
17:11They are 18 points from 14 matches.
17:16Yeah, they are qualified already.
17:18So, now we are waiting for the next two.
17:21Third and fourth.
17:22Third and fourth, which I think…
17:24No, no. What I mean is, where do they go from here in the sense?
17:26Where do you see them progressing?
17:29Will they make the final? Will they win it?
17:33I don't see them winning.
17:36Because again, it's the two people, the openers.
17:40They are banking on the openers.
17:42They don't seem to be the all-round team that…
17:45Like Gujarat or maybe other teams are there.
17:49Some of them have not even qualified.
17:50That's a different issue.
17:51But they don't seem to be the all-round team.
17:53But they are banking on these individual brilliances.
17:57Especially one or two individuals.
17:59Which is going to be a problem.
18:01Because we have seen in the past, Gale…
18:04RCB was banking on Gale.
18:06He used to get them tons and tons of runs.
18:09But once it comes to the playoffs, he fails.
18:13And they don't know what to do.
18:15Similarly, if Rahul or Quinton D'Cock leaves early,
18:18and I am sure they will be at sea.
18:21But the advantage is, both Gujarat and Lucknow,
18:25they get the second chance.
18:27Because they probably finished 1 and 2.
18:29Which means the loser gets into the qualifier 2.
18:33Which will give them the second chance.
18:34But I still feel that Lucknow is at a disadvantage
18:38with the way I look at their performances through the season.
18:44Just to add on to the playoffs,
18:45even Rajasthan can finish in Top 2
18:47if they win their next match because of the run rate.
18:49So it's not fixed for LSG.
18:51They have already announced. I am not sure.
18:53I know. They just qualified.
18:55Because RR is on 16 points.
18:57Lucknow has made it.
18:59Top 2 is not fixed.
19:01Top 2 is not fixed.
19:03Lucknow is qualified.
19:05Yeah, definitely.
19:06The run rate of RR is better than LSG.
19:10So if RR wins, they will come in the second spot.
19:13No, but RR has to win.
19:14And they shouldn't lose any runs or anything.
19:18The run rate also should be good enough.
19:20At the moment, they are ahead of LSG.
19:22Yeah, at the moment.
19:24If they win, the run rate doesn't get down.
19:26They are playing their next match against Chennai.
19:28So you never know what will happen.
19:30Okay, we are getting to the close of the IPL.
19:35So we will have more of it.
19:38We can discuss more of it later.
19:40Anish, tell us about the contest.
19:44Because we couldn't have predicted this result today.
19:47So let us know what is in store for our readers.
19:50Well, again, I will repeat the line.
19:52IPL defies all cricketing logic.
19:55But at Gulf News, there is a logic.
19:57Predict the winner.
19:58And you walk away with this beautiful apparel kit.
20:01As well as a one-year digital subscription.
20:03You are a winner every day on Gulf News.
20:05But with IPL matches, you don't know who is going to win.
20:08So remove your cricketing cap.
20:11Keep it on the side.
20:12Just make a blind guess.
20:13And you will be the winner.
20:15Good one, good one, Anish.
20:17Okay, now it is our turn to predict the winner tomorrow.
20:22Tomorrow is RCB playing Gujarat Titans.
20:25Who is going to win, Vaas?
20:27I think RCB should play their heart out and win this match.
20:33Gujarat is already fixed in the top two.
20:35So they don't have anything.
20:37They are the best players.
20:38Especially they should be resting Hardik Pandya and Rashid Khan.
20:41But RCB is going to play their heart out.
20:44And I hope they win tomorrow.
20:46So that they can qualify.
20:48So Bangalore or Gujarat, Sadesh?
20:52I feel Bangalore will throw the kitchen sink tomorrow, Shyam.
20:57Because they are desperate to win.
21:00So that way…
21:01They have also lost a very close match, a couple of them.
21:05And I am sure they will do everything in their possibility to come out winners.
21:13So I will go with RCB as well tomorrow.
21:15Though Gujarat Titans, I would think they will be the team to beat in the final also.
21:21But I would go with RCB.
21:24And Sadesh says that Bangalore is going to throw the kitchen sink at Gujarat.
21:29But Gujarat's performance has been so dominant.
21:32Will that be enough?
21:34Like I mentioned, Shyam, there is a very highly possible chance that Gujarat will rest players.
21:41And they need to give rest to guys like Rashid Khan.
21:44Even Pandya, they might not play tomorrow.
21:46Just because for them, this match doesn't matter.
21:49So it's better to put your feet up and give other players a chance who have not got an opportunity.
21:55At the second time, RCB, as much as we all back them to win tomorrow.
22:01But that doesn't guarantee them the place.
22:04So are they going to go berserk where they need to win by 100 runs to go ahead of Delhi?
22:09Are they going to do that?
22:10Or they are going to be smart enough and hope that win this match.
22:13And hope for the best that DC lost the last match to Mumbai.
22:19I don't know what's going to happen. But I am backing RCB to win.
22:22But if they go the other way, it might backfire.
22:24Because sometimes going berserk, you might end up losing badly.
22:28Correct.
22:29Which thinking cap they are going to put, I don't know.
22:32I believe they should go for the win.
22:34And hope for the best that Mumbai will not allow.
22:37Because Mumbai and Delhi rivalry is strong.
22:39Mumbai will not give it easy on a platter to Delhi.
22:42My gut feeling is, Gujarat might still win even if they don't feel they are a free team.
22:50Simply because they are on a high.
22:52They are on a roll.
22:53When a team is winning, that rubs on the rest of the players.
22:57Whether you are a substitute or when you come off the bench also.
22:59You are right.
23:00You are on a high. Your adrenaline is really, really flowing.
23:05So, Bangalore will find it very, very difficult to beat Gujarat tomorrow.
23:10So, I put my money on Gujarat.
23:12And that's it for today.
23:14So, for all the latest updates and breaking news, please log on to Gulf News and all our channels.
23:21And please join us tomorrow for our video chat.
23:25Thank you very much.
23:26Good night.
23:27Thank you. Bye-bye.
23:28Goodbye from KKR this season.
23:30Bye-bye.