"Credit to Sunny for what he did in the second innings" - Venkatesh Iyer lauds Sunil Narine for his explosive knock during RCB vs KKR IPL 2024 clash 

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer has credited Sunil Narine's blistering display for the comfortable run chase against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Friday, March 29. KKR bagged their second consecutive win in the 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL), making a solid start to their campaign.

Narine, playing his 500th T20 contest, did not fare quite so well with the ball considering his high standards. Introduced into the attack in the final powerplay over, he was taken apart by Cameron Green, and eventually ended with figures of 1-40.

However, he proved his worth with the bat, scoring a quickfire 47 off just 22 deliveries. He took on the RCB bowling in the powerplay phase, where KKR ended up compiling 85 runs, almost half of their target. Narine was dismissed by Mayank Dagar in the seventh over, but not before he scored two fours and five sixes in his innings.

Venkatesh Iyer remarked how Sunil Narine's onslaught made things easier for the rest of the batting unit, as evidenced by the 19 deliveries that were remaining at the end of the run chase.

"Credit to Sunny for what he did in the second innings. It was important for me to carry on the momentum. We have always spoken about taking the momentum through, and if we do get a platform, then banking on it. That is what Sunny did, he gave us an amazing start, and all I had to do was just go along and capitalise on that," Venkatesh Iyer told Shreyas Iyer in a post-match interaction.

The surface at the Chinnaswamy was a huge talking point, especially at the halfway mark of the innings. Many felt that the wicket was not a trademark belter usually on show, and regarded 182 as a par score, before KKR made a mockery of the run chase.

"I think the wicket got better in the second innings. Credit to you, you chose to bowl first, that was a very good decision, an important toss for us to win. It was important for us to understand that the ball will hold up at a slower pace , it was not coming onto the bat as nicely," Venkatesh Iyer added.

Venkatesh Iyer also managed to make a mark in the run chase following Narine's exploits. The left-handed batter scored 50 runs off 30 balls, almost wrapping up the run chase himself.

"From one end, it was coming on great onto the bat, and from the other end it was stopping a bit" - Shreyas Iyer on KKR's pitch interpretation

Shreyas Iyer walked out to bat when KKR had scaled half of the target, and he ensured that he was right there till the end to push the team over the line. The skipper scored 39 runs off 24 deliveries, which comes across as encouraging after his disappointing outing in the season opener against the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at the Eden Gardens.

"To be honest, as we were communicating in between, the wicket was two paced. From one end, it was coming on great onto the bat, and from the other end it was stopping a bit, getting some extra nip with the slower ones. So, that is what I realised that from one end we need to target the bowlers, and from the other end see to it that we at least get ball-to-ball runs," Shreyas Iyer said

KKR are scheduled to face the Delhi Capitals (DC) next in Vizag on Wednesday, April 3.