The match was played in hot and humid conditions in Abu Dhabi which was a change for a number of key foreign players in the KKR squad.
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) captain Dinesh Karthik batting against Mumbai Indians. (Photo: Twitter/@IPL)
After Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) lost their opening match of this season’s Indian Premier League (IPL) to Mumbai Indian on Wednesday, skipper Dinesh Karthik has said that “it was a pretty rusty day” for them.
Defending champions Mumbai Indians rode on a comprehensive team performance to register their first win of this year’s IPL as they defeated KKR by 49 runs at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi.
“I think we had areas to do well with bat and ball. I think it was a pretty rusty day to be honest, I don’t want to get too analytical about it but it’s ok the boys realise where they could have done better,” said Karthik on Star Sports at the end of the match.
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KKR failed in almost all the departments as their main players like Andre Russel, Eoin Morgan and Pat Cummins failed to produce any brilliance. Karthik believed that they were yet to adjust to the new playing conditions.
“Couple of guys — (Pat) Cummins and (Eoin) Morgan — just finished their quarantine today. It is hard — playing in the heat and getting used to the conditions. Don’t want to be too analytical, the boys put in a good effort. I haven’t had the conversation about that (regarding tweaking the top order) with Baz (coach Brendon McCullum), will let you know by the next game,” said Karthik.
Mumbai skipper Rohit Sharma was the star of the night with the bat as the smashed 80 off 54 deliveries to help his team put 195 on the board before the bowlers produced a disciplined show to restrict the KKR batting unit at 146/9.
Other than Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav and Saurabh Tiwary contributed with quickfire 47 and 21 respectively in the middle-order. Yadav and Sharma had stitched a 90-run stand.
Other than Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav and Saurabh Tiwary contributed with quickfire 47 and 21 respectively in the middle-order. Yadav and Sharma had stitched a 90-run stand.
Chasing the massive 196-run target, Kolkata lost both their openers — Shubhman Gill (7) and Sunil Narine (9) — within the first five overs with their scorecard reading 25/2. While Trent Boult dismissed Gill, James Pattinson accounted for Narine.
Jasprit Bumrah, who conceded 43 runs in four overs against Chennai Super Kings, made a magnificent comeback and jolted KKR twice in an over. Both Eoin Morgan (16) Andre Russell (11) became the victim of Bumrah in the 16th over.
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