Cricket is a game of fine margins and sometimes the losing team feels hard done by with the loss. This feeling is especially compounded when the teams have put their all and lose the game by the barest of margins.
Some teams smile such losses off while other teams and players display a range of emotions. Last night’s game between KKR and Rajasthan Royals was one such game. Sanju Samson was ecstatic when Rajasthan Royals won. However, KKR captain Shreyas Iyer was dismayed and he did not hide his emotions.
The game-changing over
Rajasthan Royals had put up a mammoth 217 after 20 overs and KKR needed special innings to cross the line. Finch and Iyer knew their task and got together to put up a 107 runs partnership. Shreyas Iyer was in golden touch and played a fantastic inning. he got 85 off 51 and was striking the ball as clean as a whistle.
After 16 overs, KKR were in complete cruise control with 180 on the board and Venkatesh Iyer and Shreyas Iyer at the crease. With the required rate of nearly 10 runs and over, the match was in KKR’s pocket. However, the 17th over from Chahal completely changed the complexion of the game.
In that over, Chahal took 4 wickets which included a hat-trick ad gave just 2 runs. He sent Venky and Shreyas back to the dug-out and swiftly turned the match in Rajasthan’s favour.
Shreyas Iyer makes his displeasure known
It was the 4th ball off the over and only 2 runs had come off the Chahal over till now. Shreyas Iyer knew he had to go for the slog but he completely missed the line. The ball went crashing into his back foot and he was adjudged LBW.
As he walked into the dug-out, he had his bat and helmet in his hand and he could be seen having an animated conversation with coach, Brendon McCullum. It looked as if he was trying to explain something that had happened on the field and was visibly agitated. However, Baz did not seem to react much. This may have been to keep the overall emotions under check.
— Diving Slip (@SlipDiving) April 18, 2022
Shreyas Iyer is a young and dynamic captain. It is natural for him to be emotional about a loss where he played so superbly and missed out by such a small margin.
