Published: May 18, 2026 at 4:18 pm
Kolkata Knight Riders kept their playoff hopes alive in the TATA IPL 2026 with a comfortable 29-run win over Gujarat Titans in a high-scoring contest. Former India player Piyush Chawla praised Sunil Narine’s match-defining spell while explaining why chasing 248 was always going to be a daunting task for the visitors.
“Sunil Narine is one of the best in the business, no doubt. Cricket has evolved, and runs are flowing everywhere. Many things have changed in modern-day cricket, but one thing hasn’t, his economy rate. No matter the surface or the venue, 450 runs were scored in this game, but Narine’s economy rate stood out as the difference. He bowled the tough overs and kept it tight. He also picked up two wickets,” Chawla lauded Narine’s economical spell on Star Sports’ Amul Cricket Live.
“When Shubman Gill was going strong and looked set for a hundred, Narine changed his angle. We rarely see him go around the wicket to a right-hander. But he did it to cramp Gill for room. He stayed on a good length for most of the game. The only full delivery he bowled was the one that got Gill out, when he came around the wicket. That worked perfectly. That is what makes him truly special,” Chawla said.
On why chasing 248 was always going to be difficult for Gujarat Titans, he said: “Shubman Gill is a very reliable batter who knows his game well. He has scored plenty of crucial runs for his side. But a target of 248 is a different ball game. For a team like GT, who are used to posting or chasing totals around 200 to 210, this was always going to be a big ask. They are consistent in that range. But when the target crosses 240, it becomes very challenging for their batting style. The way Gill and Sai Sudharsan bat, they rely on building partnerships. They don’t have the same explosive firepower in the top order.”
On Finn Allen’s explosive batting, he said: “Every time Finn Allen manages to get set in the middle, he ends up scoring big runs. Just the brute power he has and the sixes he hits make opposition bowlers fear bowling to him. Finn Allen is the kind of batter who has a knack for punishing you. If bowlers bowl the wrong line or length to him, he will play his big shots and become a nightmare for you. The pitch was not easy to bat on either, but for Finn Allen, it didn’t really matter. We saw at the other end, Ajinkya Rahane played a knock of 14 runs in 14 balls. And even Angkrish Raghuvanshi took a little time to start his innings. That was only because they had the liberty of Finn Allen at the other end. What he did was phenomenal. The number of sixes he hit in that 35-ball innings speaks volumes about the danger Allen brings to the opposition. Every time he gets beyond the powerplay, he becomes even more dangerous.”
On GT’s chances of finishing in the top two, Chawla said: “Gujarat Titans will be worried because they would want to finish in the top two. They still have the ball in their court. They have a game against CSK left. If they win that one, they will definitely finish in the top two. But if not, then net run rate and all those things will come into the picture. You want to be safe because you don’t want to be dependent on others, especially at this stage of the tournament. The things that are in your control, you just want to make sure you do them really well.”
