IPL 2022: KKR skipper Shreyas Iyer lauds Rinku Singh after RR tie, calls him a great asset for future

Shreyas Iyer-led Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) lost five games on the trot after a fine start in IPL 2022. On Monday evening (May 02), the two-time winners locked horns in-form one-time champions Rajasthan Royals (RR) at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai in match 47.

Opting to bowl first, KKR rode on Tim Southee's two-fer and one wicket apiece from Umesh Yadav, Shivam Mavi and Anukul Roy to restrict Jos Buttler-starrer RR to a moderate 152-5. Only skipper Sanju Samson's 54 was the stand-out performance among the Rajasthani batters. In reply, KKR were 32-2 but Iyer and Nitish Rana's cautious knocks and Rinku Singh's swashbuckling 23-ball 42, studded with 6 fours and a six at a strike rate of 182.61, propelled them past the finish line by seven wickets.

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After Rinku's top performance, Iyer lauded him and said post the end of proceedings, "I was talking to my teammates in the dressing room and was like, the way he's maintaining his calm even in such pressure situations playing his second or third game, it's outstanding. Building that partnership with Nitish Rana in that situation is something we have to praise and he's a great asset for the future of the franchise. The way he has given starts right from the first game, he doesn't look like a newcomer in the team,” Iyer said.

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After this much-needed victory, KKR remain alive in the playoffs race with 8 points from ten encounters. RR, on the other hand, succumbed to their second successive loss but remain in the top-four, at the third position, with 12 points from equal number of games.