Aaron Finch and Cheteshwar Pujara have raised concerns about Venkatesh Iyer’s lack of intent during Kolkata Knight Riders’ (KKR) chase of 199 against Gujarat Titans (GT). Iyer, coming in at No. 4 with KKR at 43 for 2 in the sixth over, struggled to get going against GT’s spinners. He was dismissed by Sai Kishore for just 14 off 19 balls, without hitting a single boundary. This set the tone for a disappointing chase, and KKR ultimately fell short by 39 runs.
Finch Criticizes Lack of Intent
Finch, speaking on ESPNcricinfo’s Time Out, emphasized that you cannot hit boundaries or sixes if the initial instinct is to simply knock the ball into the leg side. “You need to have intent to take it [spin] down. If your first instinct is just to knock it into the leg side and run one, you’re on a hiding to nothing. It was mesmerising, the lack of intent,” Finch said.
Pujara Questions Communication from Coaches
Cheteshwar Pujara also echoed similar concerns, noting that when conditions are tough, it’s crucial for the player to receive clear communication from the coaching staff about how to approach their innings. He wondered whether Venkatesh Iyer was instructed to simply “knock it around” while facing Rashid Khan. “Was he told to just knock around when Rashid was bowling and not take him on? I don’t know what the message was,” Pujara questioned.
KKR’s Batting Collapse
KKR were chasing a challenging target but seemed to lack the necessary aggression. At 62 for 2, they were still in the game, but their inability to accelerate against GT’s spinners pushed the required rate to 13.10 by the 10th over. Finch felt that the game was already over by then, noting, “The game was over after ten [overs]. They just let the required run rate get so far out of hand.”
Finch Critiques KKR’s Strategy
Finch pointed out the flaw in KKR’s strategy, particularly considering their nine-batter lineup. “That automatically tells me they are going to be ultra-aggressive at the start, try to get ahead of the run rate,” Finch explained. “For me, that was just a poor calculation of how to go about a run chase of 200. They went out with the attitude not to lose by 100 runs. It was almost like, ‘Let’s get 160, and we’ll be okay with that.'”
Pujara on KKR’s Bowling and Strategy
Pujara also took aim at KKR’s bowling performance, stating that the pitch wasn’t conducive to leaving too many runs behind. He said, “It wasn’t a flat pitch where in the last five overs you can get 60-70 runs. You can’t leave more than ten runs an over in the last ten and expect to be in the game.”
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