'It was good captaincy from...' - Harbhajan Singh lavishes praise on this IPL captain for an astute tactical move
There have been a number of incredible games played by all the teams in the sixteenth edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). The last-ball thrillers have been a constant in the season, which has lit up the tournament and entertained the viewers thoroughly.
The captains of all the teams have impressed with their shrewd tactics, which have led their team to victory on numerous occasions. The T20 veteran experts have also praised them for their smart on-field work this season.
The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) captain, Nitish Rana, has also been impressive as a leader. Rana, who is captaining an IPL franchise for the first time, has shown immense maturity, irrespective of the performance of the Knight Riders.
The mediocre run of the two-time champions can’t be blamed on the newly-appointed captain Nitish Rana, as the overall depth of KKR is below par. The injuries and unavailability of the key players have only made the matter worse for Rana.
Harbhajan Singh praises Nitish Rana for the on-field tactic
Kolkata Knight Riders won a close encounter against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) last night, as they defended 9 runs in the final over. At a stage, they were looking down and out, but some terrific bowling by KKR bowlers in the slog overs scripted a memorable victory for KKR, who have otherwise looked like one of the weakest teams in the competition.
Nitish Rana’s move to give the last over to in-form Varun Chakravarthy instead of Shardul Thakur turned out to be the match-winning move, as Varun conceded only 3 runs in the over. Since then, Rana has been receiving a lot of accolades for this decision.
Harbhajan Singh, who had also been a part of the Knight Riders earlier, credited Rana’s captaincy for the victory.
“Varun Chakravarthy bowled tight lines all along the death overs against SRH. He changed his angle and showed confidence in the final over to defend eight runs. It was good captaincy from Nitish Rana as well for giving the ball to Varun,” stated Harbhajan in a show with Star Sports.
Kolkata Knight Riders still have an outside chance to qualify for the playoffs. However, they would need to be more consistent and ruthless than they have so far been in the season.