Regarding Venkatesh Iyer, Mike Hesson said, “He seems to love playing against Mumbai Indians.” Despite being struck on the knee earlier, he did not appear to let it stop him. He played a match-winning hand when everyone else was suffering due to the seaming ball, timed everything flawlessly, and batted with a strike rate of over 200.”
At the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Saturday, the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) trounced the Mumbai Indians (MI) by an innings, earning their eighth IPL 2024 triumph. In the rain-affected game, Kolkata Knight Riders amassed 157 runs and held Mumbai Indians to 139 from their allotted 16 overs. This made them the first team to guarantee their place in the play-offs this season.
On Match Centre Live, JioCinema IPL analysts Brett Lee, Mike Hesson, and RP Singh complimented Varun Chakaravarthy (2/17) and Venkatesh Iyer (42 runs) for their respective performances.
Regarding Varun Chakaravarthy, Brett Lee said, “He bowled beautifully.” In an attempt to pick the hard length, he struck the ball short in the wicket, making it tough for the batsmen to get underneath it and complicating cross-bat strokes.
“They bowl as a partnership, they know the conditions well and they utilised it to good effect,” said RP Singh in reference to the KKR Spinners. They took maximum advantage of the match-ups and bowled solid distances. Varun was able to bowl freely against Rohit because Sunil Narine kept things tight. Varun bowled brilliantly, making full use of his variations. These two have consistently bowled effectively; even when they don’t pick up wickets, they do a good job of stopping the run flow.”
Following their victory in the match that was postponed due to rain, KKR were the first side to earn a spot in the IPL 2024 playoffs. Mumbai Indians, on the other hand, will play their final games for pride despite having already been eliminated from the IPL 2024.