Kolkata Knight Riders captain Ajinkya Rahane blamed the batting unit after they suffered a shocking 16-run loss against Punjab Kings at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium, Mullanpur, Chandigarh in the ongoing IPL 2025 on Tuesday.
Chasing a paltry score of 112 runs for the win, KKR was bundled out for a meager 95. The visitors were 62-2 but kept losing wickets at regular intervals to veer off the track. Ajinkya Rahane was dismissed LBW and he believes the slide started from there. On replay, it was seen that the ball had struck Rahane outside the off-stump but the KKR captain didn’t bother to take the review.
PBKS’ veteran leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal returned with match-winning figures of 4-28 as he bounced back to form. Thus, PBKS was able to defend the lowest score in the IPL history, breaking Chennai Super Kings’ previous record of the 2009 edition.
Ajinkya Rahane said in the post-match presentation, “We batted really badly as a batting unit, we take full responsibility. Bowlers did really well on this surface, restricting a strong Punjab batting lineup to 111. As an individual, you still have to be confident and positive. On this wicket, batting with full face (was better). Sweep was pretty hard to play. Keep the intent going but play cricketing shots. We were reckless and should take full responsibility.”
Rahane took the blame on his shoulders as a leader and was disappointed with the way they batted despite a low score to chase.
Rahane concluded, “Nothing to explain, we all saw what happened there. Pretty disappointed with the effort. I’ll take the blame, played the wrong shot, although it was missing. At the moment, too many things going in my head. It was an easy chase for us. When I go upstairs, need to keep myself calm and then think about what to say to the boys. Still have to be positive. Half of the tournament is still remaining. Have to address this and move forward.”
Kolkata Knight Riders will next take on Gujarat Titans at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata on Monday.
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