Nitish has looked in a much-better mindset, and his game has also improved massively in several aspects this year.
While things haven’t been easy for the newly-appointed temporary Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) captain Nitish Rana, he has done reasonably well as a captain and a player in IPL 2023. Many wouldn’t have criticised Rana had he gone through a rough patch with the willow, as the players can crumble under the captaincy pressure.
However, Rana has instead flourished after an added burden on his shoulder, which is really commendable. The 29-year-old has the second-most runs (326), only 11 runs behind Rinku Singh’s tally of 337 runs, at a batting average of 29.63 and a strike rate of 146.84 this season.
Nitish has looked in a much-better mindset, and his game has also improved massively in several aspects this year. He is now handling the pacers with a technique more solid than ever, which is a noticeable improvement.
Earlier, Nitish Rana could have been stifled quite easily by the shorter-length deliveries directed into his body, as shown by the likes of Umran Malik in the previous season. But there is a massive refinement in Rana’s technique, as he is looking better-equipped against the balls shorter in length.
Cricket in the modern day is ruthless, as the analysts find even the smallest of the chinks in a player’s armour and later exploit them persistently on the field. Last year, when Rana had an obvious weakness off the hard and short-length balls, the opponent teams exploited them severely.
Speaking to Star Sports amidst the sixteenth edition of the IPL, Nitish Rana opened up about the criticism he had to face for having this fault in his game. The KKR captain stated that many famed people also called him to criticise him last year.
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“I have worked on facing the short ball, and it is showing in my batting now. Because many were criticising my technique against the short ball. Many, many big people, who I would not name, have said things about my short-ball technique,” said Rana.
“Some even phone-called me directly, and that really hurt me. So, I have worked on my batting and dedicated my all to the game. I am in better shape and batting well as well.”
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