Former Australian opener Matthew Hayden praised Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) Sunil Narine for his all-round performance in the game against Punjab Kings (PBKS). Matthew Hayden said that despite the defeat, Sunil Narine made a significant contribution to his team.
The Shreyas Iyer-led team posted a mammoth total of 261 runs at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Friday, April 26. However, the home team failed to defend this total in the 42nd match of IPL 2024. The Punjab Kings recorded the highest scoring successful chase in IPL history.
Narine and Phil Salt formed a 138-run opening partnership in 10.2 overs. Rahul Chahar broke the partnership by dismissing Narine, who scored 71 runs off 32 balls, including nine fours and four sixes. Salt added 71 runs off 32 balls, including nine boundaries and four sixes.
Sunil Narine does his job – Matthew Hayden
Matthew Hayden expressed his condolences for Sunil Narine, who put in exceptional performances but ended up on the losing side. Hayden stated that he has experienced such situations. Hayden praised Narine’s consistent performances this season.
“I have experienced situations like this where you are the actor in the game. And when you lose a match like that, it hurts so much. I felt so sorry for him after he came out to hit most fours in the innings. There was salt all over the wounds. He does his job; he is averaging 49 in this IPL,” Hayden told Star Sports.
Narine conceded 24 runs and picked up one wicket in his four overs. However, his performance for his team was not enough to prevent PBKS from pursuing their goal. The other bowlers combined gave up 236 runs without taking any wickets at a dismal economy rate of 16.09.
Heard how hard Sunil Narine trains – Matthew Hayden
Matthew Hayden expressed surprise at Sunil Narine’s batting power. The former cricketer praised Narine for his commitment to improving his batting skills and stated that he appreciated his batting.
“I never thought we would be talking about Narine from a batting perspective. But he has returned to his glory. I heard how hard he trains and how much emphasis he puts on his hitting. He is a tragic batsman. When you think of Sunil, it’s about his mystery bowling, not so much his batting. But well done,” Hayden added.
Sunil Narine is the highest run-getter for Kolkata in the ongoing tournament. The left-handed batsman has scored 357 runs in 8 matches at an average of 44.62 and a strike rate of 184.02. Overall, he ranks second in the Orange Cap list behind Virat Kohli, who has scored 379 runs.
The 35-year-old spinner is his team’s leading wicket-taker, having taken 10 wickets at an economy rate of 6.96, with his best bowling figures being 2/30. Narine will next be seen in action when KKR take on Delhi Capitals (DC) at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Monday, April 29.
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