Andre Russell reacts to Shah Rukh Khan's 'apology' tweet after KKR's 10-run loss to MI in IPL 2021
Andre Russell gave a good answer when he was asked about Shah Rukh Khan's 'apology' tweet after Kolkata Knight Riders' (KKR) 10-run loss to Mumbai Indians (MI) from a winning position in IPL 2021 on Tuesday.
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) all-rounder Andre Russell reacted to KKR co-owner Shah Rukh Khan’s tweet after their defeat to Mumbai Indians by 10 runs in IPL 2021 match No.5 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Tuesday.
KKR failed to chase down to 153-run target set by MI despite being at 122 for 4 at the end of 15 overs, needing only 31 runs off the last 5 overs with six wickets in hand. The shock defeat left Shah Rukh Khan disappointed as the Bollywood actor took to Twitter to apologies to the fans.
"Disappointing performance. to say the least @KKRiders apologies to all the fans!" Shah Rukh wrote on Twitter.
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Russell, who was expected to take KKR over the line along with former captain Dinesh Karthik, said he supports that reaction from Shah Rukh when he was asked about the co-owner’s tweet in the post-match virtual press conference.
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"Yeah, I support that (Shah Rukh Khan) tweet but at the end of the day the game of cricket... you are not sure until it's over,” Russell said.
The West Indies cricketer, who picked up 5 wickets in just 2 overs earlier in the day, failed to hit the boundaries in the last 5 overs despite being dropped twice.
Russell was dismissed in the final over by Trent Boult for an agonising 9 runs off 15 balls.
Also Read | Sehwag questions Russell, Karthik's approach after KKR's 'shameful defeat'
“I think we are still confident, we still played some good cricket and I am proud of the boys. You know, we are definitely disappointed but it's not the end of the road, it's only the second game and we are going to learn from it," Russell said.
Talking about the collapse towards the end, Russell said he has seen a lot of T20 sides suddenly lose way like this in the chase.
"I just think it's a game of cricket. I have played hundreds of T20 games and I have seen games where teams cruise in on the driver's seat and then suddenly lose a few wickets, new batters come in and struggle to get away and that's what happened tonight," he said.
"So, we definitely have to learn from this as I have said before. We will look to make sure that who's in, stays in and once we learn from all these mistakes that happened tonight we will definitely do better because we have a good team. I have trust and confidence in the boys," the all-rounder added.
Rusell further said the wicket was not the easiest to bat on and for him also it was challenging.
"You have to try and stay as still as possible, be open-minded. It is a difficult wicket to bat on and it is not easy for a new batsman to come in and start the hitting from ball one. It is very challenging, even for me the ball was a bit up and down. It is not the easiest wicket to bat on, no matter how good you are you still need a couple of balls to actually get your eye in," he said.