Varun Chakravarthy
Kolkata Knight Riders' skipper Eoin Morgan showered praise on spinner Varun Chakravarthy for his match-defining five-wicket haul against Delhi Capitals on Saturday.
After being put to bat first, KKR's run-flow was bolstered by impressive knocks by Nitish Rana and Sunil Narine. The left-handed duo stitched a 115-run stand to steer their side to a dominant total of 195 runs. While Rana smashed 81, Narine slammed 64 to regain his batting form.
In response, DC's batting unit was decimated by Chakravarthy's fifer. The KKR mystery spinner wreaked havoc by scalping five wickets in a span of just 17 deliveries. Pat Cummins also joined the bandwagon by taking three wickets as KKR registered an emphatic 59-run victory over the Shreyas Iyer-led side.
Following KKR's triumph, Morgan lauded the Rana-Narine pair along with applauding Chakravarthy's bowling performances this season.
"We had had a nice couple of days to reflect on things. In such a compact tournament, it can be easy to get caught up. Great of Sunil to come back and play as a proper allrounder. And Nitish Rana and him adding all the runs. The decision to bat Narine there is all the coach. He likes to play his cards. It is all Brendon," said Morgan in the post-match presentation.
"Given the nature of the tournament, it is not a tournament where sides get 100 in top 10. You need a longer batting line-up than a strong one. That is why I am batting lower. Varun is such a humble guy. he just goes about his work. Throughout the tournament, he has been our standout performer," he added.
