On Friday, it was Sunrisers Hyderabad who had a last laugh against Kolkata Knight Riders. The Kolkata-based franchise however gave a tough fight but could not pull off a heist at Eden Gardens. Even though they lost the match, the KKR skipper is elated with his batting unit.

“As a batting unit I’m very happy with my batting but I can’t be too critical because these are the same bowlers who will win me a game some other time. Very happy with the fight we showed but would have loved it more if we got two points as well,” he said.

“We had faith. As a batting unit someone or the other player has played an extraordinary inning over the last 4 matches but this happens. To chase down 230 you have to bat really really extraordinarily which we didn’t do today.”

Skipper Rana scored 75 runs in just 41 balls and helped KKR score 205 runs in reply to SRH’s 228 runs. For Hyderabad, it was Harry Brook, whose willow did the talking, punishing KKR bowlers all around the park. The England-based batter registered his maiden IPL century as he made and unbeaten 100 runs in just 55 balls with the help of 12 fours and three sixes.

“Harry Brook played an extraordinary knock. If someone bats like this and sets a target of 230 I think it’s gonna be tough in the coming days too. It’s very difficult to score 230 runs in just 20 overs.”

Apart from Brook, SRH’s skipper Aiden Markram also scored a quick-fire fifty in just 26 balls with the help of two boundaries and fives maximums.

Nitish also provided an update on KKR’s star allrounder Andre Russell. He said, “It’s not an injury, it’s a cramp. It’s because of dehydration. Talking about his batting, Russel is one of the biggest all-rounders in T20 cricket for us. If he can’t perform with the bat I know he’ll perform with the ball which he did today.”