5 min readMay 8, 2026 11:37 PM IST
With their eight-wicket win over hosts Delhi Capitals on Friday night, Kolkata Knight Riders scored their fourth consecutive win of this year’s IPL. The Ajinkya Rahane side had just one point after six matches this season and had lost five matches out of the six matches. Friday’s win meant that the Kolkata team now has nine points from ten games and are still in contention to make it to the play-offs. With the team having xx games left and the chance to make it to the play-offs, skipper Rahane shared how the team is taking one game at a time.
“One game at a time,” Rahane said at the end of the post match presentation when asked about how the team is looking towards their chance to qualify for the play-offs after four consecutive wins.
After they bundled out Delhi Capitals to a total of 142 for 8 in 20 overs, the Kolkata side chased the target in 14.1 overs with Finn Allen hitting his maiden IPL hundred with his 47-ball knock of 100 runs. In the Capital’s innings, Kolkata spinner Anukul Roy took two wickets including the wicket of Pathum Nissanka and Tristan Stubbs apart from Sunil Narine taking one wicket for 17 runs in his quota of four overs. Rahane praised Allen’s breezy knock as well his bowlers apart from the team’ fielding. “I think first of all, let me just say I’m really happy for Finn Allen. He was struggling for four five games and had been working really hard, but the way he batted tonight was fantastic.But I want to praise our bowlers again. We did well because of them and they have been doing it so consistently especially in the middle overs and death overs. Our spinners Sunil (Narine) , Varun (Chakravarthy), Anukul Roy have been fantastic. Fielding wise, we are working really hard. And our fielding coach has been really strict with us and that’s been helping us. The result you have seen in our catching and fielding, the credit goes to the fielding coach,” said Rahane.
With his one wicket, Sunil Narine now has ten wickets in nine matches this IPL with six wickets out of those ten wickets coming in the last four matches won by the Kolkata side. When asked about what conversation he has with a bowler like Sunil Narine, Rahane shared how he leaves Narine alone and how he is lucky to have spinners like Narine and Varun Chakravarthy in his side. “I think I’ll just leave him alone. As a captain, I am so lucky to have Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy in our side. You don’t have to tell them too much. I mean Sunil, he is learning every day. I mean even in the practice sessions, he is there so attentive and trying to learn something or other from other players too. Sharing his experience with every one That’s what helps me on the field. Whenever I tell him Sunny you have to bowl, come and bowl. He is always ready to do that,” shared Rahane.
Out of the four wins, the Kolkata side has bowled first in three matches with their bowling unit making sure that they didn’t not give away more than 165 runs. Against Sunrisers Hyderabad last week, Sunil Narine gave away only one run in the super over before Rinku Singh hit the winning runs in the Super Over. Rahane praised his bowling unit and credited bowling coaches Tim Southee and Dwayne Bravo for working ‘really hard’ with the bowlers. “It’s all about staying in the moment. What we discuss in the dugout and practice sessions, it’s always about being in the moment. We have been playing very good cricket in the first five games. Those crucial moments in this format are very important. If you are attentive, if you are proactive then being in the moment , that’s what helped us. I want to credit our bowling coaches Tim Southee and Dwayne Bravo. They have been working really hard with our bowlers. It’s been fantastic. I am very happy for Anukul Roy, who had a fantastic domestic season. Kartik Tyagi has been very good. He has been very clear in his mindset and is a very confident guy. Yeah the two guys have bene very good. Overall as a bowling unit, we are doing really well,” said Rahane.
