Kolkata Knight Riders batsman Venkatesh Iyer gave the title of Lord to Rinku Singh, who hit five sixes in the last five balls of the Indian Premier League match here on Sunday, saying that this left-handed batsman saved them from defeat. Iyer’s innings of 83 runs in 40 balls laid the foundation for the team’s victory, but in the 17th over, Gujarat captain Rashid Khan strengthened his team’s hold on the match by taking a hat-trick. Rinku hit a six and a four off the last two balls of the 19th over, after which the team needed 29 runs in the 20th over.
Umesh Yadav took a single off the first ball and Rinku followed it up with a 21-ball 48, hitting five consecutive sixes against Yash Dayal to seal a memorable victory for the team. Iyer said after the match, “It was a very close match, very happy that we won the match. Our coach has always said that we can score 200 any day. To be honest, the wicket was very good to bat on. You cannot play low scoring overs when the target is 200. I was just trying to execute my plans.
The batsman, who came into the team as an impact player, said, “I and Nitish (Rana) had a good partnership. Unfortunately we lost our way but ‘Lord’ Rinku saved us. To be honest, we still believed we could win. It teaches us that we should not give up till the last ball. Iyer said that this win will boost the morale of the team. Gujarat Titans’ acting captain Rashid also praised Rinku’s brilliant innings.
He said, “It has been a tough match for us. Especially for me as the captain. You had to defend around 30 runs in the last over. The same thing happened to us last year when we won. We’ll learn from it. Cricket fans will love this though. ” He defended Dayal, saying, ”It was more about him trusting his plans and being comfortable. Rashid said, “Rinku played unbelievable shots and credit should go to her for the way she finished the match.
