Follow UsKolkata Knight Riders (KKR) might not have got to the best starts in IPL 2025 but a monumental win against CSK on April 11 (Friday) definitely gives the much-needed impetus. On a pitch which was very Chepauk-like, the KKR spinners, especially Sunil Narine, packed quite a knock-out punch, picking up figures of 3/13.
Narine continued his dominance against MS Dhoni, dismissing him yet again in IPL, albeit in a slightly controversial fashion, as the ultra-edge was suggestive of a spike. The win boosted KKR into the top half of the table in second place. In the post-match press conference, KKR’s wicketkeeper batter Quinton de Kock revealed what makes Narine stand out from the rest of the pack.
Not only Narine, but his spin partner Varun Chakaravarthy, too, had a happy hunting out there, with figures of 2/22, including removing the well-set Vijay Shankar (21-ball 29).
“The biggest value they [Narine and Chakaravarthy] bring is the variety in their bowling. Both are mystery spinners, so they’re constantly mixing it up. It’s really hard for batters to line them up because you never quite know what’s coming. Beyond that, they pride themselves on accuracy and are always working on their game," de Kock said in the post-match press conference.
“When we bowled, it seemed a lot slower, it gripped a bit, and our bowlers enjoyed bowling here. We have players like Jinx [Rahane] and Mo [Moeen] who have played here, they know the conditions well. I do think it became slightly better in the second innings, so it made it easier.”
Narine wasn’t quite done yet, with the left-handed batter coming out with vengeance, smashing an 18-ball 44, where he struck two fours and five sixes, three of which came against Ravichandran Ashwin.
“As for Narine’s batting, he brings the X factor. Every bowler knows he’s going to go hard from ball one. He works really hard at it, doesn’t miss practice—even optional ones. When it comes off, it sets the tone and gets us off to a flyer,” De Kock added.
“With Sunil, it is initially trying to, I take the first ball of the innings, Sunil likes to go from ball one, so I give him the info required. It is pretty easy, just get him on strike, you know he’s going to have a crack from ball one, once I find my feet, I keep up the momentum.”
KKR next travel to Chandigarh, where they will play PBKS on April 15 (Tuesday).