Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Ajinkya Rahane firmly backed his team after they suffered a heavy loss to Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL opener on Saturday. The skipper said there is no need for the defending champions to panic as he is certain that the middle-order will soon start firing.
At Eden Gardens, KKR were scoring at over 10 runs per over at the halfway mark before Rajat Patidar-led RCB turned the tide. A match-turning spell from left-arm spinner Krunal Pandya restricted KKR to a below-par 174/8, a target RCB chased down with 22 balls to spare.
"This is our first game of the season and the batting line-up or the team which we have, we have guys who like to go after the ball. I don't want to pinpoint on certain things. As a team, I thought, in a few areas we did really well. There're always areas we can improve as a team," Rahane said at the post-match media interaction.
Backing his middle-order batters despite their struggles, Rahane said, "...guys who got out in the middle overs, they actually did well for us in the past. So, I'm going to back them. They tried to play their game tonight. It didn't work out, but it's okay."
"It's always about giving them that freedom and allowing them to go out there and play their game. If that works out, it looks really good. If that didn't work out today, it's okay. It's going to happen. This is a long tournament. As a team, we back each and every individual and that is the goal," he added.
One major talking point was Rinku Singh's lower down the order at number 6 as KKR opted for Impact Sub Angkrish Raghuvanshi ahead of him.
"Rinku has been batting really well for KKR and also for the Indian team. Especially in this shorter format, he has been doing really well. The talks, as you mentioned, sending Rinku up the order. Yes, we are thinking about it.
"But sometimes you have to play with certain situations. And you have to see who is actually better in that particular situation. We thought Angkrish was the better option because we had around 10-11 overs when Angkrish went in. But we will see him bat up the order," Rahane said.
Proud moment for Angkrish's mom 🥹💜 pic.twitter.com/FyyMolqXiC
— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) March 22, 2025
KKR's pace-bowling also looked thin without Anrich Nortje (back injury) as the South African recruit is still not 100 per cent fit. In his absence Spencer Johnson leaked at 13-plus runs per over, while Vaibhav Arora (14.00) and Harshit Rana (10.66) were also expensive.
"We don't need to panic or we don't need to think too much. It's a tough sport for fast bowlers, especially for the bowlers. They are trying hard. They are working hard. And for me, it's always about controlling the control levels.
"Again, guys who are sitting on the bench, they are equally good. But we have to actually see the combination, what combination we can go with.
See, Spencer has been doing really well. I know he bowled earlier. Whatever we have seen or whatever I have heard, he's been doing really well. Just one of those days," said Rahane.
Andre Russel did not bowl but Rahane said there are no fitness concerns surrounding the veteran all-rounder.
"He is absolutely fit. You are not going to use all the weapons in one game. We have five frontline bowlers. They are wicket-takers," Rahane said.
