Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) co-owner Shah Rukh Khan shared a heartfelt message with the team after their dominant 80-run victory over SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) at Eden Gardens on Thursday, April 3. The Bollywood icon praised the players for their outstanding performances and commended their efforts.
Defending a target of 201, Kolkata bowled out Hyderabad for just 120, marking the latter’s heaviest defeat in the league’s history. After the match, KKR CEO Venky Mysore conveyed Shah Rukh Khan’s message to the team in the dressing room.
Shah Rukh’s message to the KKR players was:
“Wow! I guess the secret to a gameplay like this is that I should come on the screen during team meetings before the match. Played like the champions we are. Awesome, everyone. Well done, Angkrish, you were sublime.”
”Ajinkya was fantastic – captain’s innings and great strategy! And Venkatesh, don’t think too ahead, so just the time on the crease. That’s where you belong. Fantastic. And Rinku, so happy to see you smile. You’re a champ!
“Bowlers, so well done! Sunil and Varun, it is magical to see you guys bowl together and we are fortunate to have you here. Harshit, nice catch, bro, and great bowling. And Vaibhav, you were a star today. We played to a plan and stuck to it.”
“Congratulations, Andre, Moeen bhai, Ramandeep, it was such a united effort. And Anukul, good catch, beta. One learning from this match mainly – listen to what Quinny says. All the best, wish I was there to party with you all. Will join you soon.”
The Bossman’s message 💜💬 pic.twitter.com/yjr9G8PnW3
— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) April 4, 2025
“Plan Was to Stabilize Till 11th-12th Over” – Rahane on KKR vs SRH
At the post-match presentation, KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane acknowledged that the team lost early wickets after being put in to bat. He mentioned that their strategy was to stabilize the innings until the 11th-12th over.
Rahane stated on KKR’s victory:
“This game was really important for us. Winning by a big margin was crucial for us. We wanted to bowl first. The toss did not go our way, we lost early wickets too. But then, the discussion was to steady it till the 11th-12th over.”
“The last two games did not go our way but we learnt a lot from them. When Rinku and Venkatesh were batting. We wanted to get another 50-60 runs in the last 30 balls. Those guys can play some really good shots.”
“We had Moeen, Ramandeep and Russell waiting in the wings too. The ball gripped a bit. We had three quality spinners too. Moeen unfortunately did not get the chance to bowl. Vaibhav and Harshit set the tone up top,” he concluded.
Get the latest cricket news here, like us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter and Instagram for more such updates.