“Got to draw a line in the sand” - Jason Roy reckons struggling KKR need to approach second half of IPL 2023 with fresh mindset

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) batter Jason Roy has stated that the team must draw a “line in the sand” and start the second half of IPL 2023 on a fresh note.

All 10 teams have played seven of their 14 league matches in IPL 2023. Kolkata are languishing in eighth position with two wins and five losses. They have tasted defeats in their last four matches and the path to the playoffs seems very rocky for the franchise.

KKR will take on Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Wednesday, April 26. Speaking ahead of the match, Roy said that the team is trying to keep their confidence high. He stated at a pre-game press conference:

"The talk in the camp is to just keep pushing hard, we got to enjoy ourselves. It is very easy in cricket, especially in short formats to lose and lose a lot of confidence. We are trying to keep the confidence high, smile in the change room, making sure our methods do not change too much.

“As individuals we need to look in the mirror, get better each session and think how we can individually impact the game in a better way. We have had some good individual performances along the losses, which is a bit of positive, but a loss is a loss. We got to draw a line in the sand now that the half of the tournament is done for us and we just got to push forward.”

In their last match in IPL 2023, Kolkata were hammered by the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) by 49 runs at Eden Gardens.

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“I really wanted to open” - Jason Roy explains why he batted at No. 5 against CSK

Roy was among the few positives for KKR in the loss against CSK. He smacked 61 off only 26 balls, hitting five fours and as many sixes.

However, he came into bat at No. 5 instead of opening the innings. Explaining the reason behind the same, the England batter said:

"I left the field for 12 minutes at the end of our innings so I was not able to bat for further 12 minutes when our innings started, and it just so happened that we lost those wickets when we did.

"It is just the rules of the game, unfortunately. There was no reason behind it, I really wanted to open and I was pushing my case to open on that wicket, and had to try and do the job in the middle-order.”

Asked about his preparations for the ODI World Cup, which will be played in India later in the year, the 32-year-old said that he is not looking too far ahead. Roy commented:

"With the 50-over World Cup at the end of the year, I have played quite a bit of cricket in the subcontinent. I am just excited to keep pushing for the rest of the tournament (IPL) because we have had a tough start. It is a huge second half for us.”

Apart from KKR, Sunrisers Hyderabad (CSK) and Delhi Capitals (DC) also find themselves at the bottom of the points table. Both have four points from seven games and are placed ninth and 10th, respectively.