‘We Wanted to…’: KKR Skipper Ajinkya Rahane Explains Why Angkrish Raghuvanshi Didn’t Bat Earlier Against Gujarat Titans in IPL 2025 Match

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) skipper Ajinkya Rahane explained the reasoning behind not promoting Angkrish Raghuvanshi up the batting lineup against Gujarat Titans (GT) in an IPL 2025 match on Monday. Kolkata Knight Riders suffered a 39-run loss to Gujarat Titans at the Eden Gardens on Monday to succumb to their fifth defeat this season.

The defending champions had been set a target of 199 but were restricted to 159/8. Angkrish Raghuvanshi, who batted at number nine, scored an unbeaten 27 runs from 13 balls but his efforts went in vain in the end.

Ajinkya Rahane speaks after KKR’s loss to GT

“This format is about being brave as a batter, you can’t think too much about the past, just learn from the mistakes and take your chances, have a positive mindset. If you think about getting out, you will get out,” Rahane said after the match.

“Instead you should think about scoring runs or hitting boundaries. We have quality batters in the middle overs especially, I back them but you have to be brave,” he added.

Ajinkya Rahane was pleased with the way Angkrish Raghuvanshi batted but he admitted that the match situation demanded other batters bat up the order. That plan, however, backfired as Vewnkatesh Iyer (14), Rinku Singh (17) and Andre Russell (21) all failed to capitalise on their starts. The trio’s wickets left Kolkata Knight Riders in trouble with almost no way back into the game.

“Good to see Angrkish batting really well. Today was a situation we wanted to push the other batters up,” Ajinkya Rahane concluded.

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Earlier, knocks from skipper Shubman Gill (90), Sai Sudharsan (52) and Jos Buttler (41*) powered Gujarat Titans to 198/3. This was after Kolkata Knight Riders had won the toss and opted to field first. The Knight Riders’ bowlers, however, endured an off day with only Harshit Rana, Vaibhav Arora and Andre Russell taking a wicket each. Star mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy finished with figures of 0/33 from four overs.

Where KKR and GT stand in IPL points table

Gujarat Titans maintain top spot in the IPL 2025 standings with 12 points from eight matches whereas Kolkata Knight Riders remain in seventh place with six points from eight matches.

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