Kolkata: Mumbai Indians gained the upper hand on Kolkata Knight Riders when the guests emerged victorious at the Eden Gardens. KKR pacer Trent Boult however said that his team will bank on Chris Lynn and Sunil Narine who will deliver runs at the top of the batting order.
“It’s the formula we have followed throughout the tournament. It was about Narine and Lynn trying to put pressure on the opposition,” Boult said at the post-match press conference after KKR lost to MI by nine runs on Saturday.
The Kolkata side that was set to chase 174 felt the early pressure when both openers Narine and Lynn failed to score and was reduced to 53/3 at the end of six overs.
“The powerplay is a big phase of the game. It has come off very well for us in other games. I don’t think there’s any need to change the formula. It was just unfortunate that it did not work out tonight,” Boult said.
The Knight Riders faced their first home defeat while chasing since 2013 and the loss registered the side’s fourth defeat in a span of five games.
“In this format, momentum is a big thing obviously. You would like to win as many games as you can. Unfortunately, it did not pan out our way,” Boult said.
“We had hurdles in the last couple of games. We know we have to play good cricket from now on. Every game is a tough game. It’s a must-win game for us now. The pressure is on us to deliver. Unfortunately we ran out of luck,” he added.
Boult said the wicket was two-paced and the opposition team bowled really well.
“There was a little bit of variation and bounce. The luxury of bowling second is you can put the pressure on the opposition, claim wickets and make it very hard for the team to chase a decent total,” said the New Zealander.
“We probably did not bat well enough, first of all. But I thought they bowled really well on a two-paced wicket.”
Having already made it to the play-offs, Mumbai rested six of their regulars.
“It’s disappointing to lose no matter which team it is. It’s a quality opposition and they can afford the luxury of moving a few players around and try a few combination. They delivered under pressure,” Boult said.
Boult’s previous match in this IPL was against Sunrisers Hyderabad on April 15 and he was the pick of KKR bowlers then with 2/30 from his full quota of four overs.
“I was nice to be off few weeks. It’s hard to push into the side with only four having the chance to make the playing eleven. I enjoyed been out there tonight and contributing to the side. We have a lot of quality in the group.”
Making a mess of a 174-run chase, Kolkata choked under pressure as the opening pair of Narine and Lynn failed to click. KKR were 53/3 at the end of powerplay overs.
“The powerplay is a big phase of the game. It has come off very well for us in other games. I don’t think there’s any need to change the formula. It was just unfortunate that it did not work out tonight,” Boult said.
It was KKR’s first home defeat while chasing since 2013 and their fourth defeat in five matches going into the knock- out stage of this IPL.
“In this format, momentum is a big thing obviously. You would like to win as many games as you can. Unfortunately, it did not pan out our way,” Boult said.
“We had hurdles in the last couple of games. We know we have to play good cricket from now on. Every game is a tough game. It’s a must-win game for us now. The pressure is on us to deliver. Unfortunately we ran out of luck,” he added.
Boult said the wicket was two-paced and the opposition team bowled really well.
“There was a little bit of variation and bounce. The luxury of bowling second is you can put the pressure on the opposition, claim wickets and make it very hard for the team to chase a decent total,” said the New Zealander.
“We probably did not bat well enough, first of all. But I thought they bowled really well on a two-paced wicket.”