"It's deafening out here" - Shreyas Iyer on Chennai crowd after KKR's defeat to CSK in IPL 2024
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) skipper Shreyas Iyer started his post-match presentation by pointing to the crowd noise at Chepauk Stadium after his side's seven-wicket defeat to the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on April 8.
The Chennai crowd had much to celebrate as their side bounced back after losing two on the bounce and with MS Dhoni out there when the winning runs were scored. With three runs needed off 17 deliveries, the 42-year-old walked in at No.5, much to the delight of the packed house.
Speaking at the post-match presentation, Iyer acknowledged the defending noise of the crowd before talking about the game.
"It's deafening out here, will try to express how I'm feeling," said Iyer.
He added:
"We fell short in terms of assessing the wicket. Phenomenal start in the power play but we couldn't capitalize. Couldn't assess conditions, pitch completely changed after power play and to score runs, it wasn't easy. They know conditions pretty well, bowled according to their plan. It was tacky, wasn't easy to go big right from first ball. It changed tremendously after power play and the way we were trying to construct our innings, didn't go to plan."
KKR had an excellent powerplay of 56/1 despite losing Phil Salt off the first ball of the game. However, the entry of Ravindra Jadeja turned things around as he picked up three quick wickets to reduce the visitors to 64/4 in the 9th over. KKR eventually huffed and puffed their way to a below-par 137/9 in 20 overs.
"Have to go back to our drawing board and learn" - Shreyas Iyer
Shreyas Iyer emphasized KKR's inability to adapt to the contrasting conditions after the powerplay and feels the side must learn from the experience to cope better in future games.
With a mediocre total to defend, KKR came unstuck against CSK skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad, who finished unbeaten on 67 off 58. CSK completed the victory with seven wickets and 14 deliveries to spare.
"Have to go back to our drawing board and learn, just a matter of one match and one innings, glad it happened at the start of the tournament. When we go back, we know our home conditions pretty well, important to analyze and assess situations and make the best use of it," said Iyer.
The defeat was KKR's first in IPL 2024, leaving them second in the points table with three wins in four games. Meanwhile, CSK remained fourth with their third victory in five outings.
Both teams will play their next encounter on Sunday, April 14, with KKR taking on LSG and CSK playing MI.