Not at all sad after playing a great game: Shreyas Iyer

Kolkata Knight Riders captain Shreyas Iyer said that he is not at all sad after his team went down fighting while chasing a target of 211 against Lucknow Super Giants at the DY Patil Stadium on Wednesday.

LSG openers KL Rahul (68 not out off 51) and Quinton de Kock (140 not out off 70) carried the bat as they put up a record partnership of 210. Nitish Rana (42 off 22), Shreyas (50 off 29) and Sam Billings (36 off 24) narrowed the chase for KKR while Rinku Singh (40 off 15) brought them agonizingly close. 

Marcus Stoinis dismissed Rinku and Umesh Yadav off the final two balls to earn LSG a spot in the playoffs.

"I'm not feeling sad at all because that was one of the best games of cricket I've ever played, to be honest. The performance, the way we showed our character and attitude in this game, it was simply outstanding," Shreyas said at the post-match presentation.

Shreyas heaped praise on Rinku who smashed four sixes in the final three overs as KKR came close.

"I love the way Rinku got us to the end, but unfortunately couldn't time it when two balls were remaining. He was really sad. I was hoping that he could finish the game for us. He could have been the hero. Still, he played a fantastic knock and I'm really happy for him," he said.

The defeat sealed KKR's elimination from the playoffs race as Shreyas reflected on a below-average season.

"Definitely it was a volatile season for us. We started off pretty great and in between, we lost five consecutive games. We did a lot of chopping and changing, depending on the situation we had to make it happen because we had too many niggles and also the form was up and down," he said.

"The vibe has always been positive in the dressing room. No matter what, ups and downs, it's part and parcel of the game and there was no panic button pressed in the dressing room. So that's the best thing that I would say that happened this year," he added.

Shreyas also paid tribute to outgoing head coach Brendon McCullum who will take charge of England's Test team.

"I built a really good relationship with Baz. He's someone who is really calm and composed even when the situation is going out of the way. He's got that personality where you can go and talk to him at any point of the game. Also, off the field, he's an outstanding person. He's got that aura when he walks around the players. The best part about him is that he never judges any player or treats anyone badly. All of us are equal for him and that's what I really respect about him," he said of the former New Zealand captain.

Rahul happy to be on the winning side

LSG skipper KL Rahul was relieved that his team was able to get away with a win by the smallest margins.

"There haven't been so many games that have gone to the last ball. Yes, they have gone to the last over but not so close. Happy to be on the other side, good way to finish the last game of the league stage," he said.

Rahul was effusive in his praise for opening partner De Kock who hit 10 boundaries and as many sixes to record the third-highest individual score in IPL  history.

"I was a spectator today in the last few overs. QdK's batting really well throughout the season. What we lacked in the few games were that the guys who were having good games weren't winning us games. It was great to see how Quinny carried on and batted till the end," he said.