Kolkata Knight Riders captain Ajinkya Rahane, usually composed during media interactions, delivered a blunt response to those questioning his batting style after his team’s 65-run loss to Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL on Thursday, April 2. While addressing the media after KKR’s second consecutive setback, Rahane was questioned regarding his opening alliance with Finn Allen, the clarity of anchor and aggressor roles within the team, and the public discourse surrounding his strike rate, particularly when facing spin bowlers.
Rahane, who was dismissed for 8 runs off 10 deliveries, showed no patience for critiques of his methodology.
“I think I have one of the best strike rates so far from 2023,” he said. “People who are talking about me (are) probably not watching the game or they have a certain agenda against me. They don’t like me playing. They don’t like to watch me play.”
The captain’s assertions are backed by data: since the beginning of 2023, Rahane holds the fourth-highest strike rate during the powerplay (overs 1 to 6) for players who have faced a minimum of 300 balls.
Kolkata Knight Riders are scheduled for consecutive home fixtures next week, taking on Punjab Kings on April 6 and Lucknow Super Giants on April 9.
Powerplay Performance Comparison (Overs 1–6 since 2023)
Player Innings Runs Balls Faced Strike Rate Average
TM Head 29 720 383 187.98 48
A Sharma 39 761 431 176.56 34.59
PD Salt 33 730 420 173.8 36.5
AM Rahane 31 552 329 167.78 69
YB Jaiswal 44 1029 617 166.77 54.15
While his early-over numbers are strong, his performance dips after the Powerplay. In the middle overs (7 to 15) against spin, his strike rate falls to 114.02 during the same period. In the match against SRH, he was removed by Jaydev Unadkat on the final delivery of the fifth over.
Rahane’s Phase-wise Performance vs Pace and Spin (Since 2023)
His biggest strength is attacking pace in the powerplay, where they score quickly and dominate bowlers. The main concern lies in the middle overs against spin, where the scoring rate dips and boundaries become scarce. Improving strike rotation and intent against spin could significantly elevate overall performance.
‘Jealous of me’
Rahane maintained his defiant stance, suggesting that those criticizing him were envious of his achievements.
“The amount of success which I got, I guess they are jealous of me. I am not too worried. You guys know what I am doing. Just one bad innings…not a bad inning, but my intent was there. Sometimes as a batter, you don’t get that rhythm, you don’t get that flow. People who are talking, either they don’t understand the game (or) I think they want me to play a different kind of innings. They didn’t expect that Ajinkya Rahane will basically prove his game this much. So I am happy they are talking about me, negative or positive, either way. I am really happy that they are talking. Let them talk.”
In their pursuit of 227, KKR was dismissed for 161, failing to establish any major partnerships. The team lacked even a single fifty-run stand, suffering a collapse where they lost their final seven wickets for just 41 runs after being 120/3.
On Pitch
Regarding the pitch, Rahane praised the conditions and credited the opposition’s strategy while acknowledging KKR’s inability to stay together at the crease.
“The wicket was good today. Played really well,” Rahane said. “With the ball, how we came back after 10 overs, it was amazing. At that point, they looked good for 250-260. They were 140-150. But I think the bowlers bowled really well, came back smartly. SRH bowlers, they saw what we did in the first innings. They got an idea of what we were doing. The first six overs were crucial for us, we lost that extra wicket of Cameron Green, which he got run out. When you’re chasing that target, it’s bound to happen. You are going to lose wickets, lose that momentum. What we needed today was that partnership.”
