KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS

Jaipur: Kolkata Knight Riders captain Sourav Ganguly feels that his side might have lost two matches out of four but nothing has been lost as yet in the long tournament.

"If we win the next two matches we would be back again. This is a long tournament, each team has to play 14 matches and we have played only four till now. It is too early to predict anything," said Ganguly after his team's arrival here to play against Rajasthan Royals tomorrow.

Ganguly said he hoped things may turn around for him and his team from Jaipur where he had started opening the innings in the one-dayers with Sachin Tendulkar.

The former India captain would not read much on the departure of Australia skipper Ricky Ponting and New Zealander Brendon McCullum.

"We knew that it would happen right when the team bid for them. Yes it is a loss but we knew about it. We have their replacements ready. We are not the only ones who have been hit by departures of overseas players. Other teams too have suffered," said Ganguly.

He admitted that he has not been among the runs and have struggled in last few matches. "I have not been among the runs, but I am confident of scoring big." Praising Rajasthan Royals for the manner in which they have bounced back after their loss to Delhi in their first game, Ganguly said it can happen to his side too.

On Shane Warne, Ganguly said, "I know he (Warne) is bowling well and always been a great bowler, we have to face him. We may take courage from the fact that the local Indian lads like Shukla and Das have been doing well." Terming the absence of Pakistani speedster Shoaib Akhtar as unfortunate, he said his team possessed a balanced attack. "We have Umar Gul, Agarkar, Shukla and Brad Hodge."

Tags : saurav Ganguly,Kolkata Knight Riders, IPL, IPL 20 20, Indian Premier Leauge,

Read full post >>

It was shocking for the Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens, as they went down to a determined performance from the Mumbai Indians. For the visitors, it was their first win of the IPL. For the hosts, it's time to evaluate their options for the next few matches as Brendon McCullum, Ricky Ponting, and David Hussey will soon leave their ranks. Sourav Ganguly and John Buchanan will have to draw from all their vast experience to turn the momentum back in their favor.


Tags : Kolkata Knight Riders, Indian Premier Leauge,

Read full post >>

Mumbai: Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan spoke to CNN-IBN&ී&෧s Rajeev Masand on his IPL dreams, Shoaib Akhtar and his "simple strategy" for the tournament.

On meeting the Knight Riders

I&ී&෧m very fond of the guys who are playing for Knight Riders, whether it is Cheteshwar Pujara or Shoaib Akhtar, Ricky Ponting or Brendon McCullum. Unfortunately I haven&ී&෧t met them yet because I have been busy.

So I want to tell all of them, please if you are watching this I&ී&෧m dying to meet you, but I&ී&෧m just trying to get the the backend of Knight Riders done. So I&ී&෧ll be there.

On Shoaib Akhtar

Shoaib is a controversial guy. He has had his downs and ups. There were talks that &ී&෧is he the right choice or not&ී&෧. And I stood by him, John Buchanan stood by him, Sourav stands by him. And we were very happy to have him. I get dreams that all his problems will be resolved and on 18th he will take three wickets in the first over.

On his strategy

As far as strategy is concerned, I have one simple strategy: go kick butt and win. If you have seen Escape to Victory, I am like Pele. You take the ball here, you go here, score the goal, simple. So go kick butt and win the championship for the Knight Riders.

Tags : SRK,Shah rukh Khan,IPL, Indian Premier Leauge, IPL 20 20,

Read full post >>

Brendon McCullum's incredible unbeaten century coupled with decimating fast bowling helped Kolkata Knight Riders inflict a humiliating 140-run defeat on Bangalore Royal Challengers in the opening match of the Indian Premier League here today.

Put in to bat, the Kolkata team scored a massive 222 for three and then skittled out their opponents for a paltry 82 to begin their campaign in the Twenty20 extravaganza in style.

McCullum produced a scintillating 73-ball knock of 158, which happens to be the highest individual total in T20 games.

The Kiwi wicket-keeper batsman single handedly took the Kolkata team past 200-run mark, punishing all the bowlers mercilessly before a packed house.

McCullum's innings was studded with 13 sixes and 10 fours as he scorched the Chinnaswamy stadium with his amazing stroke-play.

The Bangalore team's run chase was far from ideal as skipper Rahul Dravid (2) was the first to depart when teen sensation Ishant Sharma knocked over his stumps in the second over of the innings.

The Bangalore top-order collapsed like a house of cards as their batsmen buckled under pressure.

Jacques Kallis hit the first boundary of their innings off Ajit Agarkar in the fifth over but only to be dismissed on the next ball, handing a simple catch at mid-on to Murali Kartik.

No top-order batsman from the Vijay Mallya owned team could reach the double-digit mark against a disciplined fast bowling.

Agarkar was the pick of the bowler as he accounted for three batsmen giving away 25 runs in his quota of four overs.

Read full post >>

Royal win for Kolkata Knight Riders.

Bangalore: Looks like there is life after Adam Gilchrist. Brendon McCullum plundered a staggering, unbeaten 158 (10 fours, 13 sixes) as Kolkata Knight Riders drubbed the Bangalore Royal Challengers by 140 runs to clinch the inaugural match of the DLF Indian Premier League at the Chinnaswamy Stadium on Friday.

It was the kind of innings that made the contest one-sided, lopsided. But it was a day when cricket celebrated batting savagery of the finest kind.

Bangalore were never in the reckoning. Chasing an improbable 222 after putting Kolkata in they were bundled out for 82.

The hosts opened with Rahul Dravid and Wasim Jaffer, the pair least likely to get them off to a flier. Soon enough the skipper (Dravid) was back in the dugout, cleaned up by Ishant Sharma.

It was full and it had pace and sting. But these attributes do not necessarily get you Dravid. Today he succumbed to the sinking feeling of 222.

Virat Kohli perished next, inside-edging Ashok Dinda. Wallowing under the weight of the number, Bangalore missed out on delicious scoring opportunities. In trying to hit too hard they failed to make a capital out of the loose deliveries.

Soon enough followed the procession of wickets. Ajit Agarkar snared Jacques Kallis & Sourav Ganguly had Mark Boucher. And after pottering away for a 15-ball six Jaffer relieved both himself and the team, edging Dinda to Ricky Ponting at slip.

In fact the score sheet looked like a local telephone number not a single batsman in the top-order could manage double digits. Praveen Kumar struck a few lusty blows towards the end to stay unbeaten on 18.

How much McCullum dictated the course of the game could be gauged from the fact that the next highest score was 20. (McCullum belted more than 70 per cent of the runs).

There were some nerves in the beginning, alright. Praveen Kumar, who opened the attack, exploited the freshness of the turf and got the ball to jag back cramping McCullum for space.

It was the second over that lit up the evening. Determined to get on with it McCullum made mincemeat of Zaheer Khan, playing his first game after a long layoff.

Shuffling just a little he clouted Zaheer for 18 runs (4,4,6,4) between mid-wicket and deep forward square-leg.

The six was a parody though'"an intended flick to square-leg that soared over third man.

Sourav Ganguly, after scratching around initially, got off the blocks with a top-edged pull off Ashley Noffke. The Queensland quickie too found himself on a burning deck as McCullum continued the blast of sixes with a pull over square-leg and a straight hit over mid-off.

With the score reading 61, Bangalore drew first blood. Once again Ganguly found the death lap of his old nemesis. Zaheer, who has had the better of him in their recent exchanges, had his man edging to Kallis at slip.

With McCullum pulverising the attack with disdain, Ricky Ponting needn't have smashed the stuffing out of the ball. The total swelled to 73 in eight overs, 87 in ten.

Ponting however failed to hit the straps as well he would have liked although there was his signature shot in between'"a quick-arm pull off the front foot.

Ponting's dismissal for 20 (failing to clear mid-off) didn't in the least check the glut of boundaries. McCullum, now seeing the ball like an air balloon, went berserk racing to his hundred.

On view was everything on his menu "the pulls, the delicate scoops'"as the boundaries grew both in number and distance.

He clouted three sixes off Kumar in the last over notching up his 150 in the process. How Dravid missed Anil Kumble's influence in the middle-overs.

Rameez Raja best summed up the knock: No way to describe it. All the adjectives would lose their gloss.

Teams:

Bangalore: Wasim Jaffer, Jacques Kallis, Rahul Dravid (capt), Virat Kohli, Cameron White, B Akhil, Mark Boucher (wk), Zaheer Khan, Praveen Kumar, Ashley Noffke, Sunil Joshi

Kolkata: Brendon McCullum (wk), Sourav Ganguly (capt), Ricky Ponting, David Hussey, Debabrata Das, Mohammad Hafeez, Laxmi Ratan Shukla, Ajit Agarkar, Murali Kartik, Ishant Sharma, Wriddhiman Saha.

Tags : Match Result,Kolkata Knight Riders,McCullum,IPL 20 20,Indian Premier Leauge,

Read full post >>