With Sunrisers Hyderabad’s win against Mumbai Indians in the final league match, Kolkata Knight Riders’ campaign in the Indian Premier League 2020 came to an end. The equation was simple – for KKR to progress to the playoffs, MI needed to beat SRH, but the two-time IPL champions had to pack their bags as Sunrisers thrashed the defending champions to become the fourth and final team to enter the playoffs.
Following the team’s elimination, captain Eoin Morgan posted a message on Twitter, thanking fans for their support and vowing to come back stronger in the next IPL five months from now. “Thank you to all of our loyal fans for your support this season. It’s now time to take stock, learn and come back stronger #KKRHaiTaiyaar @KKRiders,” Morgan tweeted along with a picture of the entire KKR unit.
KKR finished fifth on the points-table with 14 points from seven matches, and it was their net-run rate that dented their chances of making the top four, with Mumbai Indians, Delhi Capitals, Royal Challengers Bangalore and SRH emerging as the top four teams entering the playoffs. Morgan was appointed captain of the team in the middle of the tournament, with the management informing of Dinesh Karthik’s decision to hand over the reigns to the World Cup winning captain from England in order to concentrate more on batting.
{{/usCountry}}KKR finished fifth on the points-table with 14 points from seven matches, and it was their net-run rate that dented their chances of making the top four, with Mumbai Indians, Delhi Capitals, Royal Challengers Bangalore and SRH emerging as the top four teams entering the playoffs. Morgan was appointed captain of the team in the middle of the tournament, with the management informing of Dinesh Karthik’s decision to hand over the reigns to the World Cup winning captain from England in order to concentrate more on batting.
{{/usCountry}}But the change in guard didn’t really help KKR as under Morgan, the team won only three matches, while emerging victorious in four while Karthik as captain. Morgan ended the tournament with 418 runs from 14 matches, including a career-best 68 not out against Rajasthan Royals in KKR’s final league game.