Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) captain Eoin Morgan is seeking better intent from his team’s batting unit after their bitter loss against Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Mumbai this Saturday (April 24) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021.
KKR suffered a six-wicket defeat to RR after posting an inappropriate score of 133/9 in their allotted 20 overs in the first half. For Morgan, it was a case of his team lacking the right approach for the conditions and ending 40 runs short of a challenging total.
I think we lacked a lot of intent and impetus throughout our whole innings. We were sort of behind the eight-ball probably from the get-go. Rajasthan adapted to the wicket really well and we didn’t.
Morgan said at the post-match presentation
So I would say the majority [of the issues] was with the bat. About 40 short, which is a lot in a T20 game. Too much for our bowlers [to make up for] tonight,
he added.
A batting dominated team like KKR can’t afford to go at the tempo they did versus RR as it leaves their weaker suit – the bowling line-up – exposed in trying to defend an under-par score. And though the surface was a bit tricky to bat for a line-up that is set up to flourish on pitches offering true pace and bounce, Morgan gave no excuses for an underwhelming performance.
The defeat versus RR was KKR’s fourth of the IPL 2021 so far after five matches as they now stand bottom of the points table, requiring an immediate turnaround in either department to get their campaign going.
Morgan is hoping for some respite for his team in terms of the conditions in Ahmedabad – their next base in a tournament following the caravan system – but the captain is also mindful of the fact that his team will still need to play smarter cricket for their success.
I think the clearer the mind, the easier it is. I think the capabilities of our side [is not an issue]… There is an element of playing smart cricket and building partnerships within that, but ultimately we want guys to play some free-flowing cricket. That wasn’t there today unfortunately.
Morgan said.
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) next face Punjab Kings (PBKS) in Ahmedabad on Monday (April 26).
