IPL 2022: Match 1, CSK vs KKR – Who Said What

Kolkata Knight Riders cruised to a comfortable victory against the defending champions Chennai Super Kings in the first match of IPL 2022. Shreyas Iyer, on his captaincy debut for KKR, managed to get his bowling changes right and it was a dream start for him in his new franchise colours. He stayed unbeaten in the end to take his side home in a relatively low-scoring match and he could not have asked more from his bowlers.

Chasing a target of 132, the Kolkata Knight Riders openers Ajinkya Rahane and Venkatesh Iyer ensured that no wickets fell in the powerplay as they managed to find the boundaries regularly. The veteran batter Rahane who was back at the opening slot in the tournament after a long time, played a beautiful hand of 44 and anchored the innings well from one end. Sam Billings played a quick-fire knock towards the end and CSK never looked like making a match out of their low total.

However, MS Dhoni’s half-century in the first innings will be one of the positives for them, while they will look out for a better start from the openers Devon Conway and Ruturaj Gaikwad. The middle-order crumble is something that is not usually associated with the CSK franchise, but such was the damage created by Umesh Yadav at the start of the innings that it created a lot of pressure for the batters to up the scoring rate.

Winning skipper, Shreyas Iyer:

 There is always tension when MS Dhoni is batting. I knew momentum was going to shift towards them with the dew around. It was difficult to grip the ball. Enjoying the new franchise. CEO, management, support staff have been outstanding. Just need to carry the momentum. It was spongier than we imagined. This is one place I love to play. I grew up here. I thought it would be flat. It was pretty easy for me with the bowling line-up I had. Umesh has worked hard in the nets and did well in the practice games too. Really chuffed to see him perform today.

Losing skipper, Ravindra Jadeja:

Dew will be the vital part in this edition. If you win the toss, you will look to bowl first. The wicket was a little damp in the first 6-7 overs and then it came on nicely in the back end of the innings. We were trying to take the game deep. Everybody bowled well given the dew. Bravo bowled very well.

Player of the Match, Umesh Yadav:

Getting this after two years (the award) and I am very happy with the performance. I haven’t played white-ball cricket for a while and thanks to the head coach and the captain for keeping trust in me and telling me that I am going to be in the starting eleven. I am actually working on my rhythm because after having played a lot of Tests, the rhythm is such that when you have to start you gotta land in the right areas to extract the swing. As a fast bowler, and outswing bowler, you always feel good to get a wicket in the first over and that helps build the pressure. Usually, I take my training and work ethic very seriously and feeling really well.