Kuldeep stars with four-for to hand Capitals fourth win
Rana's 57 not enough as Knight Riders suffer their fifth straight loss of the season
Rana's 57 not enough as Knight Riders suffer their fifth straight loss of the season
Scorer: @Thilak_Rama | Commentator: @PeterDellaPenna
11.14 pm Capitals make sure Kuldeep's four-wicket haul doesn't go to waste. They ice this chase with an over to spare. Not the most beautiful cricket with the bat by either side, but Capitals made fewer mistakes to get the four-wicket win.
KKR captain Shreyas Iyer: "We started off really slow and lost a couple of wickets. The wicket was holding a bit at the start but I still feel that the total was pretty low on this wicket and obviously the way we played in the first half, there are no excuses for that. We need to go back and assess where we went wrong. [On the constantly changing opening pairs] It's been really difficult for the last few games because we are not able to set the right opening pair because lot of chopping and changing is happening, because some of the players are getting injured in between the games. It's really difficult to have a stable batting lineup as well as bowling. When you are playing this league, you need to have the right combination right from the first game. If you click, you can take it from there. I think we need to stick with what we've got right now and play some fearless cricket, not be very conservative in terms of decision-making. We have five matches remaining so we need to play our heart out give everything for the franchise. [Asked how to play fearless when players aren't performing] I think we need to tell them to stop thinking. Forget about performances in the past. Just start off fresh and back your instincts. The preparation has been on point from everyone. It's just the mindset where you need to sit back and just think about what I can do right, be overconfident. It's fine. Even if you go wrong, it's all right. [On Umesh] He started off pretty well with a wicket. After that, he went for 11 runs in an over and momentum shifted completely towards the other team I feel. But after that, the way he came back and gave me two wickets. He's been one of those guys who has given me that hard... not a hard time, but he has given me special moments in the game. Whenever I give him the ball, he is ready to perform and also in the field he is always ready to do something brilliant. It's really good that he's been performing consistently and it's good to have him in the team."
Delhi Capitals allrounder Rovman Powell: "A bit of pressure but I keep trusting the wicket. I think it's a pretty good wicket, it's just a wicket that'll take an extra five or seven balls to get in on, not a lot of cross-batted shots on it. But it was a pretty good wicket. It wasn't spinning or anything so I just keep trusting the wicket and trusting myself. We think [the total] was short. We said, that once we don't give early wickets, get to 40 or 50 for 2 at the end of the Powerplay, just keep the momentum and we'll be okay. [Today's performance] It's very important. It give me confidence personally also. For the start of the competition, it wasn't the best. But I know I am in good form, so I keep trusting myself, keep trusting the work I did before IPL and keep trusting the work I did in the nets before these games. I think it's a feel good factor. A lot of bases have been covered. It's just for us now to put the pieces together. Whatever team Ricky and the captain put on the park, I think it's a real competitive team."
Delhi Capitals captain Rishabh Pant: [On the feeling at 80 for 5 in the chase] Obviously we were thinking that we lost too many wickets in the middle, but if we take the game deep because there was not enough runs needed at that point, then we thought if we take it deep we will get across the line. Obviously it's good to have Marsh back. But Khaleel got injured in the last match. Once he's back, I think we will be 100%. [On his low catch] In practice I have been keeping enough and it was one of my best catches of the season. [Rovman Powell as a finisher] Most of all we have thought about time to give him a certain number of overs. But in these kinds of situations when you lose too many wickets, he has to come in. But we look at him in a finisher role and he has done well for us. We are not thinking too much about the points table. We are taking it one match at a time. We can be more clear to our plans because when you are under pressure, if you are clear with your plans, that one or two extra boundary can be the difference in the match. That's something we are working on, a little bit more energy in the field. [On not giving Kuldeep a fourth over]. I was thinking to give him another over from this end. Then we thought he'd get the over from the other end. The ball was getting wet because of that so we thought it's better to give it to a fast bowler. I stopped him to give him change of pace in the match. It didn't work in our favor but it's part and parcel of the game."
Kuldeep Yadav is Player of the Match for his four wickets. [Asked about his competition with Chahal in the Indian team, translated into English] "He he encouraged me a lot. He has been like a big brother and stood by me during my bad times. In my heart, I want him to go and win the Purple Cap because he has been bowling exceptionally over the past four years."
That's it for our live commentary coverage tonight. Come back tomorrow for more IPL action. On behalf of Deivarayan Muthu and the scoring team, I'm Peter Della Penna. Take care!
Powell comes down to have an encouraging chat with Shardul.
Shreyas brings himself on with 4 to win off 12.
The Kolkata Knight Riders captain says there are "no excuses" for the side's failure with the bat against Delhi Capitals
"He looks like he's got energy, faster arm action and now he's got the skill to take over," Daniel Vettori on Kuldeep's return to form
Ian Bishop "not surprised" by KKR's call, given the situation they find themselves in in the tournament, but believes the spinner can still turn it around
Rana's 57 not enough as Knight Riders suffer their fifth straight loss of the season
Both sides need a win to stay within touching distance of the top 4