In IPL 2025, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) once again failed to solve the pitch problem and suffered a crushing defeat in their own home against Gujarat Titans (GT). KKR has played four matches on this ground so far, out of which they have lost three and won only one match.After winning the toss and deciding to bowl first, KKR bowlers could not make much impact. Gujarat scored 196 runs thanks to brilliant half-centuries from Shubman Gill and Sai Sudarshan. In response, Kolkata’s team could score only 159 runs.In the first innings, KKR spinners bowled a total of 11 overs, in which they conceded 91 runs and could not take a single wicket. At that time the spinners were not getting much help from the pitch. Some balls were definitely turning, but their number was much less.In the second innings, Rashid Khan, Sai Kishore, and Washington Sundar together bowled 10 overs, conceded only 80 runs, and took five wickets. They were getting good turn from the pitch, and it became very difficult to score runs against them.In such a situation, the question arises whether Rahane’s team once again failed to read the pitch, or the pitch did not turn out to be as it seemed in the beginning.In today’s match, Gill and Sudarshan gave a very good start to GT’s team. There was a partnership of 114 runs in 12.2 overs between the two batsmen. Both batsmen also scored half-centuries. The biggest reason for GT’s victory so far has been their top three batsmen. This season, Jos Buttler, Gill, and Sudarshan have scored a total of 11 half-centuries so far. The trio have scored a total of 1059 runs at an average of 53.90.After the good partnership of Gill-Sudarshan, Butler also played a good innings. He scored 41 runs in 23 balls. However, KKR bowlers bowled brilliantly in the final overs. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th overs, KKR bowlers conceded only 29 runs. That is why GT’s team could not score more than 200 runs even after such a good start.Chasing 199 runs, it never looked like KKR’s team was getting close to victory. They lost wickets at regular intervals, and when they went to stop the fall of wickets, their run rate slowed down.Talking on this topic, Sourabh Solanki, cricket coach at Ambedkar University, said, “After losing two wickets in the powerplay and scoring 45 runs, captain Rahane and Venkatesh Iyer tried to play a little cautiously and tried to save wickets, but during that time the required run rate completely dominated. In the next four overs, Rahane and Venkatesh scored only 23 runs, and the required run rate had reached from 11 to 13.10. After this, when an attempt was made to attack, GT’s spinners kept taking wickets one after the other. Only Rahane was able to score a half-century from Kolkata’s side; apart from him, no other batsman could perform well, which was a big reason for their defeat.”
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