Kolkata (West Bengal): Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) pacer Harshit Rana backed star fast bowler Mitchell Starc to turnaround his performance and said that they have full faith in the 34-year-old speedster.
A century stand by Will Jacks and Rajat Patidar could not prevent another heartbreaking loss for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), as they agonisingly fell short by just a run against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Eden Gardens in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024.
KKR pacer Starc had a difficult day at work against RCB in the match on Sunday, conceding 55 runs in 3 overs.
Rana tipped Starc to make a big recovery, despite the Australian giving away 55 runs in 3 overs at an economy rate of 18.33.
Karn blasted Starc for three huge sixes when just 21 runs were remaining in the last over.
But in the end, Starc maintained his composure and helped KKR defeat RCB by a run.
Harshit said Starc is a bowler who can help the Knights win games.
"It's his own plan. Every bowler takes the field with a plan. He is a top bowler and someday, he will win us games. We are not worried about him.
We have full faith in him," Rana said in the post-match press conference.
Rana said that the game's pivotal moment came during RCB's run-chase in the twelfth over.
The Challengers' team favorites were Will Jacks and Rajat Patidar when they put on 102 runs for the third wicket following the early losses of star batter Virat Kohli and captain Faf du Plessis.
But Russell got rid of both batters. To make things more difficult for RCB, Narine removed Cameron Green and Mahipal Lomror in the very next over.
"The over from Andre Russell was the turning point in the game where he took two wickets. In the last 5 overs, our bowlers did exceptionally, did not give away enough runs.
That was the phase we played really well," Rana added.
With this win, KKR moved up to the second spot with five wins and two losses, giving them 10 points.
The RCB remained bottom of the table with just a single win and seven losses, aggregating just two points.
