All posts tagged: Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR)

‘It looked like he had that zip and late swing’: Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya lauds debutant Ashwani Kumar’s match-winning performance vs KKR | Ipl News

‘It looked like he had that zip and late swing’: Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya lauds debutant Ashwani Kumar’s match-winning performance vs KKR | Ipl News

Mumbai Indians skipper Hardik Pandya lavished praise on debutant Ashwani Kumar for his 4-wicket haul against defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders at the Wankhede on Monday. Pandya revealed that he decided to go with Ashwani after witnessing him in action in a practice game where he had zip and late swing, adding that he thought the 23-year-old had a pretty different action. “This wicket just offered a bit more and we thought Ashwani can come in and bowl the way he bowled. First of all, it’s all because of the scouts. All MI scouts have gone all the places and picked these young kids. We played a practice game and it looked like he had that zip and late swing, had a different action and plus he is a leftie. The way he took that wicket of Russell was a very crucial wicket,” Hardik said at the post-match chat. The MI skipper also singled out the moment the youngster gobbled up the catch of Quinton de Kock off Deepak Chahar’s bowling in the second over …

‘Collective batting failure’, says Kolkata Knight Riders captain Ajinkya Rahane after MI thrash them by 8 wickets | Ipl News

‘Collective batting failure’, says Kolkata Knight Riders captain Ajinkya Rahane after MI thrash them by 8 wickets | Ipl News

A forlorn Kolkata Knight Riders captain Ajinkya Rahane said that his team’s ‘collective batting failure’ was the reason for their 8-wicket loss against Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede on Monday. Kolkata were brought to their knees by MI debutant Ashwani Kumar who snapped up figures of 4/24 as the defending champions were skittled out for just 116. “Collective batting failure. It was a good wicket bat on as I mentioned in the toss. 180-190 would have been good on this wicket. It has a very good bounce. Sometimes you have to use the pace and bounce. We got to learn really fast from this game,” Rahane said in the post-match chat. “Couldn’t do much with the ball. They tried their best. But not much runs on the board. We kept on losing wickets. Four wickets in the powerplay. It was difficult to consolidate and get that total on the board. You need that partnership going. You need one batsman to stay till the end,” he added. Story continues below this ad In the match, the …

‘Didn’t have lunch today, only ate a banana’: Ashwani Kumar after recording best figures by an Indian player on IPL debut with 4/24 vs KKR | Ipl News

‘Didn’t have lunch today, only ate a banana’: Ashwani Kumar after recording best figures by an Indian player on IPL debut with 4/24 vs KKR | Ipl News

Mumbai Indians Ashwani Kumar had a dream debut for the franchise when he snapped up 4 wickets in his first-ever Indian Premier League match against the Kolkata Knight Riders, becoming the only Indian player to do so. The left arm seamer, who was snapped up by MI for just 50 lakhs in the IPL 2025 mega auction, showed his talent when he also became only the second player in the league’s history to snap up a wicket from his very first delivery. Kumar who was bought in for the 4th over of the match struck straightaway off his first ball when he took out KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane for just 11 runs. He would continue with his fine form, snapping up both Rinku Singh and Manish Pandey in the same over. He sent back Andre Russell for his fourth, setting the record in the process with figures of 4/22. “I felt very good, there was pressure but the team environment helped me to settle down. I didn’t have lunch today, I only ate a banana, …

Who is Ashwani Kumar, the Mumbai Indians debutant who took a wicket in his first ball vs Kolkata Knight Riders | Ipl News

Who is Ashwani Kumar, the Mumbai Indians debutant who took a wicket in his first ball vs Kolkata Knight Riders | Ipl News

Ashwani Kumar, the 23-year-old fast bowler from Punjab was handed his Indian Premier League debut for the Mumbai Indians in the match against Kolkata Knight Riders in Wankhede on Monday. The left arm seamer garnered attention with his ability to bowl brilliantly in the slog overs and has plenty of variations in his kitty. In the 2025 mega auction, he was roped in by the Mumbai Indians for Rs 30 lakhs. He was also the leading wicket taker in the 2023 Sher-E-Punjab Trophy, helping his side win the silverware which caught the eyes of the MI scouts. Kumar was brought straight into the action when he completed a great catch to send back Kolkata opener Quinton de Kock off Deepak Chahar’s bowling in the 2nd over. Kumar also took a wicket off his first ever delivery when he sent back Kolkata Knight Riders captain Ajinkya Rahane in the 4th over. Story continues below this ad “Sporting a unique hairstyle, this left-arm pacer from Punjab is surely looking forward to kickstarting his stint with the most …

IPL: Moeen Ali makes KKR debut, replaces Sunil Narine against RR; Ajinkya Rahane gives explanation | Ipl News

IPL: Moeen Ali makes KKR debut, replaces Sunil Narine against RR; Ajinkya Rahane gives explanation | Ipl News

Moeen Ali was handed his first Kolkata Knight Riders cap by his former teammate at Chennai Super Kings and current team mentor Dwyane Bravo on Wednesday ahead of their Indian Premier League match against the Rajasthan Royals. Ali was handed his KKR debut in place of Sunil Narine, who captain Ajinkya Rahane said was not well. “We’ll look to bowl first. The wicket looks really good. If we bowl first, we’ll get an idea how this wicket is. The dew factor is huge here. It’s about staying positive, this format is all about being fearless, playing with intent. We played very good cricket, T20 is all about giving your best each and every day. We are looking forward to this game,” said Rahane. He then added, “We learnt a lot from the last game. We want to stay in the moment. I don’t look at the stars that much, for me, it’s all about contributing. Sunil Narine misses out, he’s not well. Moeen Ali comes in,” said Rahane at the toss ahead of the game. …

‘Happy to see him realise his potential’: Dilip Vengsarkar lauds Shreyas Iyer after Champions Trophy triumph | Cricket News

‘Happy to see him realise his potential’: Dilip Vengsarkar lauds Shreyas Iyer after Champions Trophy triumph | Cricket News

After a roller-coaster year when he won the IPL and was dropped from the BCCI central contracts at the same time, Indian middle order batter Shreyas Iyer played a vital role in the team’s triumphant Champions Trophy campaign. Former India selector Dilip Vengsarkar was all praises for the current Punjab Kings’ captain, saying he has realised his potential. “Iyer did very well but I am not happy the way he got out in the final. He should have continued till the very end and finished the game. But happy to see him realise his potential. KL too played a few important innings at number six but still not convinced Axar Patel batting ahead of him at five. The left-hand right-hand combination could be the only reason,” Vengsarkar said. Iyer also finished second in the batting charts of the Champions Trophy with 243 runs, just behind New Zealand’s Rachin Ravindra. Story continues below this ad Vengsarkar also gave due credit to the selection panel led by Ajit Agarkar. “Credit needs to go to the selectors as …

‘Felt I didn’t get the recognition I wanted after winning the IPL’: Shreyas Iyer | Cricket News

‘Felt I didn’t get the recognition I wanted after winning the IPL’: Shreyas Iyer | Cricket News

Shreyas Iyer who played a vital role in India’s triumphant Champions Trophy campaign, opened up about how he felt he did not get the required recognition when he led Kolkata Knight Riders to their 3rd Indian Premier League (IPL) title last year. This season, the batter will lead Punjab Kings who brought him for a whopping Rs 26.75 crore in the auctions after he was not retained by KKR. “I personally felt I didn’t get the recognition I wanted after winning the IPL but at the end of the day, as long as you have self-integrity and you keep doing the right things when no one is watching, that is more important and that is what I kept doing,” Iyer said to The Times of India. Last year, Iyer became the eighth captain to win the coveted IPL title as he led KKR to their third championship, beating SunRisers Hyderabad. Despite three seasons with the franchise, Iyer was released by KKR, following which he became the second-most IPL auction signing ever when Punjab snapped him …

IPL 2025 | ‘I’ll definitely do it, if it comes my way’: Venkatesh Iyer on Kolkata Knight Riders captaincy | Cricket News

IPL 2025 | ‘I’ll definitely do it, if it comes my way’: Venkatesh Iyer on Kolkata Knight Riders captaincy | Cricket News

With the Indian Premier League season right around the corner, speculations have been rife about who will lead the defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders after they let go of their title-winning skipper Shreyas Iyer. One name that has been brought up frequently is allrounder Venkatesh Iyer, who was not retained by the franchise ahead of the IPL 2025 auctions, but was bought back by them for a whopping Rs 23.75 crore. Venkatesh when asked about if he would want to lead the franchise gave his answer in affirmative in an interaction with ESPNcricinfo. “Definitely, I’m ready. Again, I’ve always said this: captaincy is just a tag. I believe in leadership. That is a bigger role to play, being a leader, There’s no ambiguity surrounding this. I’ll definitely do it, if it comes my way. There is no reason not to do it,” Iyer said. “You don’t necessarily need the tag of a captain to be a leader in your dressing room. You need to set examples. You need to be a good role model, both …