Deja vu for Kolkata Knight Riders, feat Rinku Singh and Mukul Choudhary

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Navi Mumbai’s DY Patil Stadium witnessed the birth of a superstar in 2022 when Rinku Singh exhibited his ball-striking caliber against Lucknow Super Giants, trumpeting his arrival to top-flight cricket. The southpaw hit 40 off 15 balls, including two fours and four sixes, to help Kolkata Knight Riders battle it out despite needing 61 off 20 balls at one stage. The franchise eventually came up short in the last-ball thriller, with Rinku having walked back to the pavilion following a specky by Evin Lewis. He charged in 30 yards and held on to the ball in miraculous fashion after the equation was brought down to 3 off 2. Rinku’s ebullient knock not only drew plaudits from Shahrukh Khan but also pushed him into national reckoning all of a sudden.

In a similar vein, destiny seemed to be conspiring to gift Kolkata Knight Riders their maiden win in IPL 2026 against the same adversary at Eden Gardens on Thursday. With 54 runs needed from 24 balls and just three wickets in hand, Ajinkya Rahane’s brigade was well in command. Mukul Choudhary, who is playing his maiden IPL season, channeled the spirit of Rinku by pulling off a miracle on a spin-friendly surface. In the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025-26, Choudhary was the chief architect of Rajasthan’s triumph over Delhi, smashing five straight sixes. Chasing 183, the 21-year-old was back in the saviour mode, farming the strike to trigger an onslaught which knocked the wind out of the opposition’s sails. He tonked Vaibhav Arora for two consecutive boundaries in the 17th over, especially catching the eye with a helicopter shot which paid the perfect tribute to MS Dhoni. Kartik Tyagi was next in the firing line, splurging two sixes as the monster blow over long-off took the cake. 

With 30 required off a dozen balls, captain Rahane summoned Cameron Green, who nearly dismissed Mukul off his first delivery by inducing a wild miscue. However, fortune favours the brave, as they say. The ball landed right on the edge of the circle, beating mid-off’s attempt to catch. It seemed like the pressure-cooker environment would get the better of the young lad as off-paced deliveries brought about a bevy of false shots. However, raw strength can only be denied for so long. Choudhary was soon accessing deep mid-wicket and long leg, his maximums keeping Kolkata Knight Riders in the hunt.

With 7 sought off 2, a world of possibilities awaited both teams. As Arora ran in to bowl the penultimate ball, Mukul pulled the rabbit out of the hat with a six over deep cover. A run off the final delivery is an ask that has proved to be tricky territory for men of greater resolve in the past, and Arora tried his level best to script a super over, dishing out a bouncer which Mukul missed. Albeit the wicketkeeper Angkrish Raghuvanshi failed to produce a direct hit when it mattered the most as the batters sneaked a single that was worth its weight in gold. Lucknow Super Giants head coach Justin Langer had earlier mentioned that Mukul has the ability to become a scary number six or seven for India, and his gem of a knock added a lot of substance to the proclamation.

While Mukul richly deserves the plaudits, spare a thought for Sunil Narine who completely throttled Lucknow Super Giants, conceding just 13 runs in four overs with a wicket to boot. The senior pro was under the cosh heading into the fixture; the team’s lack of wins had invited scrutiny over his place in the eleven. However, the 37-year-old tormented Nicholas Pooran, leaving him glued to the crease with zesty turners pitched on an immaculate length. None of the other spinners on the night got the ball to talk. Eden Gardens welcomed one of its true-blue warriors home with a deck that complemented his razor-sharp skills.

Returning to the drawing board, Rahane may question his field placements and bowling changes in the second innings. However, it is imperative to pay equal attention towards the poor intent in the first innings with the big-ticket signing Green resembling a cat on a hot tin roof. He laboured to 32 runs off 24 balls with three fours and a maximum, robbing the team of momentum post an excellent 84-run partnership between Rahane and Raghuwanshi. With Narine and Anukul Roy in the dugout, opting to ‘retire out’ the Australian all-rounder could have been food for thought, potentially adding 10-20 extra runs to the total in a contest that brought everyone to the edge of their seats. As compared to the glorious batch of 2024, this Kolkata Knight Riders unit has chinks in its armour. Some bold decisions could be on the horizon.

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