Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) are currently facing a difficult situation in the 2023 IPL, having suffered four consecutive defeats. In order to revive their campaign, the team is desperate for a win. However, there have been a few positive moments for KKR, such as Rinku Singh’s impressive batting as a finisher and Venkatesh Iyer becoming the second player from the team to score a century in the IPL. The first century for KKR was scored by Brendon McCullum in the inaugural IPL match in 2008.
Aggressive batter Jason Roy acknowledged that it has been a challenging first half for KKR, a team that has won the IPL twice before. He emphasized the need to “draw a line in the sand” and continue pushing hard. KKR is set to face Royal Challengers Bangalore in Bengaluru on Wednesday, a team they had previously defeated by 81 runs earlier in the season.
During a pre-match press conference, Roy expressed the team’s focus on maintaining high confidence levels and not dwelling on losses, as it is easy to lose confidence in cricket, especially in shorter formats. He highlighted the importance of individual improvement and finding ways to contribute to the game. Despite the losses, he acknowledged the team’s good individual performances.
Regarding his own performance, Roy explained that he was unable to open the batting due to the rules after leaving the field during the first half. He emphasized that he wanted to open and had been pushing for it. However, he ended up batting in the middle-order and scored a quick 61 runs off 26 balls against the Chennai Super Kings.
Roy dismissed concerns about KKR’s struggles in the powerplay, stating that the team is working hard to improve and these things happen in cricket sometimes.
Although the World Cup is scheduled for later this year, Roy stated that his focus is solely on the IPL at the moment. He is excited to continue pushing and believes that the second half of the tournament will be crucial for KKR, considering their tough start.