‘Next Kohli?’: KKR’s bizarre experiment vs GT after Shardul goes for zero | Cricket
When Kolkata Knight Riders won two sensational victories in their first three matches in IPL 2023, veterans and experts again warned other teams in the tournament about the dangerous and genuine title contenders of the two-time champions. But during the next fortnight, KKR slumped to the bottom half of the table after losing four matches in a row. Inconsistent decisions amid injury concerns cost KKR their loss. On Saturday, even as KKR opened the home game against GT on the back of a win against RCB in Bengaluru, they were criticized on social media for a bizarre experiment gone wrong. ,KKR vs GT Live Score, IPL 2023,
Electing to bat first at the Eden Gardens after light rain in Kolkata, KKR openers Rahmanullah Gurbaj and Jagdishan got the team off to a brisk start. The latter hit four fours in his 15 off 19 balls, after which Mohammed Shami opened the innings. As always, Venkatesh Iyer was expected to walk in, who has been in impressive form in IPL 2023, or perhaps someone like Andre Russell could be sent in, as the commentators pointed out. But KKR had other plans.
Walked in Shardul Thakur at number three. He has never batted so high in his T20 career. His highest batting position was No.4 in the IPL 2023 Qualifier 1 match between CSK and DC in Dubai, where he finished with a golden duck.
Shardul faced a Shami delivery without a run, before Gurbaz smashed boundaries past Hardik Pandya and the former all around the park. Shardul only returned to bat in the fifth over, once again against Shami where he was beaten short of length before deciding to go for a length ball in the next ball. He picked it up casually while trying to clear the mid-on zone for a boundary, but Mohit Sharma completed a stunner. Shardul was dismissed in four balls as KKR’s experiment failed. Here’s how Twitter reacted to it…
Shardul’s dismissal on the last ball of the fifth over saw KKR lose two wickets for 47 runs and Gurbaj fought it out single-handedly. The hosts ended the powerplay at 61 for two, with the Afghanistan star then hitting a 15-ball 39.
