Ahead of the IPL 2024 c lash between the Kolkata Knight Riders and Mumbai Indians, KKR captain Shreyas Iyer confirmed a major development as Nitish Rana was part of the Purple and Gold playing XI. This big-ticket encounter was delayed by over 90 minutes due to persistent rainfall in the City of Joy.
After moving past the 7:30 p.m. start, the toss took place at 9:00 p.m. where MI captain Hardik Pandya called it right and elected to bowl first. Then Iyer spoke about how his team is focused on securing playoff qualification before confirming the return of former captain Nitish Rana, who will replace the young batter, Angkrish Raghuvanshi.
Nitish comes in for Angkrish: Shreyas Iyer on KKR XI vs MI
Iyer said, "I tried it another time (toss), still it came down as heads (smiles at his record on losing tosses). It's part and parcel but it such games it's crucial. Not going to take those excuses though. We want the Q next to our team. Nitish comes in for Angkrish."
Talking about Mumbai Indians, Hardik Pandya revealed that he will be fielding the same side which defeated the Sunrisers Hyderabad. Pandya said, "We are going to bowl. Just want to see how the pitch behaves. It has been under covers for two days. We all are aware of the stats, but you got to turn up and play good cricket on the day. Same team."