Phil Salt, the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) wicketkeeper-batter, believes that Virat Kohli’s dismissal off a high full toss was a fortunate call for his team, contributing to their narrow one-run victory against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in a high-scoring Indian Premier League (IPL) match.
The use of the new Hawk-Eye technology to determine the height of the delivery played a crucial role, with TV umpire Michael Gough ruling that Harshit Rana’s waist-high ball was fair. Kohli, who was batting aggressively, managed to score 18 runs off just seven balls before being dismissed by Rana, who took a return catch. This dismissal proved to be a turning point in RCB’s chase of a challenging target of 223 runs at Eden Gardens, ultimately leading to their narrow defeat.
“It’s a split opinion, we know that. From our point of view, we feel like we may have got away with one there. It’s the rub of the greens, one of those calls,” said Salt, who is ranked No. 2 in the ICC T20I batting rankings, at the Knight Golf event in Kolkata.
The Englishman also suggested that utilizing technology in this way is ultimately advantageous for the game, hinting at the potential for a future review to evaluate the effectiveness of such technological advancements.
“They brought that data in, the no-ball data, for exactly that purpose. I feel like in 12 months’ time maybe there’ll be some sort of review. Is it working? Is it not working? Is it a new thing to the game?”
“But personally, from a player’s point of view, any time you’re using data and technology to be more precise and get the right decisions, that’s a good thing for the game,” Salt added.
Salt and Sunil Narine, the opening pair for KKR, have been instrumental in scoring the majority of runs for the team, accumulating a total of 535 runs from seven innings. Their strong performances have contributed significantly to KKR’s success, as the team has won five out of their seven matches, placing them at the forefront of contention for a playoff spot.
“It’s great batting with Sunil, he is a very, very low-key chill guy. He’s got a very different sort of skill set when he’s opening the batting, as opposed to, up and down the order,” Salt said.
“I suppose one of the good things for me is he takes the pressure off, and I don’t have to strike at a rate of 200 in my first 10 balls. Some games I might, but I don’t have to.”
“Normally, one of us gets going, and the other one feeds the strike. So, if we get a good start, we get a couple of boundaries away. You know, we can produce really big power plays, which is something that we’ve done.”
They have gone about their ways with a meticulous approach, picking the right bowler to attack and relied on match-ups, Salt said.
“Our conversations are mainly, who’s going to take what ball, you know, who likes to match up, left arm spin, right arm pace, all that sort of thing.”
“Normally one of us wants to put their hand up and take that arm. We keep it very, very simple.”
Narine has been a revelation with the bat at the top of the order as the KKR spinner who was known as a pinch-hitter, has batted this time with poise and patience. Narine struck his maiden T20 century, scoring 109 against Rajasthan Royals the other day.
