'Yuzvendra Chahal is most experienced....': Lasith Malinga heaps praise on RR star after KKR win
'Yuzi Chahal is....' - Lasith Malinga heaps praise on RR star after KKR win (Photo IPL/BCCI)
Rajasthan Royals (RR) beat Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) by seven runs in a high-scoring thriller at the Brabourne Stadium, Mumbai on Monday evening (April 18). Being asked to bat first by Shreyas Iyer & Co., Sanju Samson-led RR rode on Jos Buttler's 103 and rapid knocks from Samson-Shimron Hetmyer to post a mammoth 217/5 in 20 overs.
In reply, Aaron Finch's 58 and Shreyas' 85 kept Kolkata in the huntbefore their lower-order collapsed to be dismissed for 210 in 19.4 overs. The star performer for RR in the KKR run-chase was Yuzvendra Chahal, who returned with 5 for 40 including a hattrick and as many as four scalps in his last over. Chahal accounted for the wickets of Shreyas, Venky Iyer, Nitish Rana, Shivam Mavi and Pat Cummins to dismantle KKR's run chase. As a result, his spell proved to be the difference in RR's narrow win.
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Post the humdinger versus KKR, RR's fast-bowling coach Lasith Malinga heaped praise on Chahal. ''Chahal has more international experience. He is the most experienced leg-spinner in the country and in this tournament. He showed how to control the skill. That's more important for him going forward to prove he is good enough to play any competitive cricket,'' Malinga said at the post-match press conference.
''Leg-spinners have more wicket-taking options and he showed today how he can get wickets and changed the game in a single over. I think he showed all the leg-spinners that they are the match-winning bowlers in this competition," the former SL pacer added.
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At the post-match presentation, Chahal stated, "I had to take wickets in this match to change the result. I worked on my bowling. I spoke to the coaches and the skipper. I was thinking of a googly but then I didn't want to take a chance. Would have been a happy with a dot ball as well on my hat-trick ball. My googly was coming out well and sent it down to Venkatesh Iyer."
With this win, RR now occupy the second spot in the points table after Gujarat Titans (GT). KKR, meanwhile, have slipped to the sixth position.