Kolkata batsmen shot themselves in the foot in the last 5 overs.Image Credit source: PTI
Perhaps the 2026 season is not going well for Kolkata Knight Riders. Even if a team appears to be in a better position in a match, something or the other happens that the opportunity to take the lead slips away from its hands. Kolkata, which had already lost 4 out of 5 matches in the season, had to face a similar situation in the match against Gujarat Titans. In this match, the bat of the team’s most expensive player Cameron Green finally came into play, which raised hopes of a big score but the team’s train derailed in the last 5 overs.
In the match played in Ahmedabad, Kolkata batted first but once again it did not have a good start. The team had lost 3 wickets for just 32 runs. In such cameron green And Rovman Pavel settled for the team. Green in particular proved to be a trouble-shooter. Green was under pressure due to continuous failure throughout this season but this time his bat was in great shape.
Green kept waiting
Green scored a half-century in just 34 balls and even after that he kept hitting fours and sixes. Then came the 15th over after which the story completely changed. Green took 1 run on the fourth ball of this over. By this time KKR’s score was 147 runs, while Green himself had scored 75 runs in 44 balls. The team seemed to be moving towards the score of 200, while Green’s century seemed to be in the making. But suddenly everything changed.
In fact, from the 5th ball of the 15th over to the 18th over, Cameron Green got a chance to play only one ball in 20 consecutive balls. On the other hand, Anukul Roy, Rinku Singh and Sunil Narine together scored only 1 run in 8 balls. Ramandeep Singh definitely scored 17 runs in 8 balls during this period but by then the damage was done.
No runs scored on 18 balls
After this, when Green got a chance to play in the last 2 overs, this time he could not do anything himself. In the last 2 overs, Green alone faced 10 balls but could score only 3 runs. Overall, Gujarat scored only 32 runs in the last 5 overs, while 18 balls were dot. These 18 balls proved to be very costly for Kolkata, due to which the team was restricted to only 180 runs. At one time, Green, who had scored 75 runs in 44 balls, was out after scoring 79 runs in 55 balls.
