KKR captain Nitish Rana admits that Shardul Thakur exceeded his expectations with his maiden IPL fifty

Kolkata Knight Riders captain Nitish Rana was in awe of Shardul Thakur’s exceptional knock that helped the team reach a mammoth total. Rana was always aware that Thakur would pack a punch with the bat but he never expected him to play such innings against the Royal Challengers Bangalore.

Thakur smashed 68 runs in 29 balls and completely stunned RCB who were once in control of the game. KKR went from 89/5 to 204/7 courtesy of a hundred-run partnership from Thakur and Rinku Singh.

Rinku finished with a well made 46 as he added 103 runs in a fine partnership with Thakur. KKR badly needed someone to step up as they were in trouble and both Rinku and Thakur saved the day for them.

Speaking at the post-match press conference, Rana touched upon various subjects and lauded the players who looked fantastic on the night. He was very impressed with Rahmanullah Gurbaz aswell, who smashed his maiden IPL fifty.

Rana felt like if an allrounder can bat like this in such a situation then a captain cannot ask for anything more. He said, “The way (Rahmanullah) Gurbaz batted at the start and the way Shardul batted… For Shardul, I would like to say that I knew he could make a big impact as a batsman. But the way he batted was well above my expectations. What else does a captain need? If an all-rounder of yours can bat in such a manner in such a situation, what else do you need?”

He also lauded Rinku and highlighted that they needed someone who can hold one end up as Thakur was going for the big blows. Later Rinku joined the party but Rana emphasised his ability to build an innings and also hit sixes at will.

“Rinku’s innings was as important as Shardul’s innings. We all know his ability. He can hit sixes at will. I told him that you can hit sixes anytime, but if you can hold one end up till the 19th or 20th over, then do it. He did it,” the KKR skipper concluded.

KKR registered their first win as their spinners bundled out RCB for 123. Varun Chakravarthy was the pick of the bowlers with 4/15, whereas impact player Suyash Sharma on debut scalped 3/30 and Sunil Narine finished with 2/16. The KKR spinners picked nine wickets in an innings.