Hyderabad, May 3 (IANS) Ajinkya Rahane lauded Kolkata Knight Riders’ bowling unit for scripting a remarkable turnaround as they sealed a comprehensive seven-wicket win over Sunrisers Hyderabad in IPL 2026, while SRH skipper Pat Cummins admitted his side fell short of a winning total despite a strong start.

“Very good game. The way we came back with the ball. Looked like they will get 190-200. It was a good wicket to bat on. 190-200 would’ve been challenging to chase. But credit to our bowling unit, especially the spinners. They kept taking wickets. Those small moments are really important, really happy with the win,” Rahane said after the match.

Earlier, Kolkata Knight Riders bowled out SRH for 165 in 19 overs riding on a disciplined bowling performance led by Varun Chakaravarthy (3/36), before chasing down the target in 18.2 overs.

SRH had started in blazing fashion with Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma ripping into the KKR attack. The hosts raced to 71/1 in the powerplay, Head smashing a 22-ball fifty and eventually scoring 61 off 28. But when Head went out the innings lost steam.

KKR bowlers kept the pressure on with Sunil Narine and Kartik Tyagi scalping two wickets each. Ishan Kishan tried to hold the innings together with 42 off 29, but wickets fell regularly and SRH finished well short of a par score.

Cummins reflected on the missed opportunity: “Well, not our best day. We got off to a pretty good start. And then after that, we weren’t at our sharpest. Probably from where we were, we should have found a way to get higher, you know, up around 200 or past 180. But not to be.”

KKR’s 166-run chase began cautiously before Finn Allen gave it some impetus with a quickfire 29 from 13 balls. Rahane and Angkrish Raghuvanshi then took over the chase after his dismissal.

Raghuvanshi top-scored with a composed 59 off 47 deliveries, bringing up his fifty off 39, while Rahane anchored the innings with 43 off 36. Their 84-run partnership put KKR well ahead of the required run-rate.

Rahane credited the team environment and preparation: “The bowling unit has been doing really well last 5-6 games. Credit to our bowling coaches – Bravo and Southee. During practice sessions, lot of talking, lot of planning, different oppositions, different grounds. It’s all about planning and executing. Here and there you will go for runs, but as long as you’re clear in your head, that’s important.”

Even after losing both set batters late, Rinku Singh and Cameron Green calmly finished the chase with 10 balls to spare.

Cummins admitted his side failed to adapt in the latter half: “I think you just got to adapt. I actually thought, 180 was where it started. I thought the way we chose our match-ups really well. And probably the second half didn’t quite choose the moments, myself included.”

Rahane also praised Chakaravarthy’s resurgence: “Really happy for him (Varun C). He was struggling before the tournament and even going into the tournament – first couple of games. The way he came back was amazing. He was always confident. Works really hard, great attitude. You want players like him to do something for the team in tough situations. He’s been bowling the tough overs. I’m sure he will continue his performance.”

Cummins further added, “I think 180, something like that. It did dry up a little bit and slow up. But again, from where we were, I think we should have got 180 plus… Much of the same, the margins are quite small here. We still showed a lot of good things. With the bowling unit, we dragged it right to the end. My over costing 27 probably made a difference. So there’s only little moments that can make a big difference.”

Rahane summed up the team’s mindset going forward: “That win was important going into the break. Had 2-3 practice sessions. It’s all about being mentally fresh. Need to identify what areas you can improve. Support staff has been doing really well. Even though we lost the first 5 matches, atmosphere was really calm. The group which we have at the moment, really amazing.”

–IANS

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