Chennai
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) vice-captain Venkatesh Iyer said his team has no advantage in the perceived spin-friendly conditions at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium ahead of its IPL 2025 encounter against the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on Friday.
“If a team has to be a champion, it has to understand all the conditions and have the combination that can do well. We are not heading into this game thinking that this is the pitch that we would want. If we do that, I think we are selecting a comfort zone for us,” Venkatesh said during the pre-match press conference.
“You turn up to every venue and you are flexible in terms of your skill and the team’s skill as well. Last season, I remember playing a final here where our fast bowlers took most of the wickets, and if you put your head into it, then you can bat and score runs here as well,” he added.
The home side has had a disappointing tournament so far and is languishing in ninth place in the table with just one win in five games. The main criticism of CSK has been the lack of intent in its batting, which has resulted in four consecutive chases ending in a losing cause. Venkatesh, however, said that despite the lack of high scores in the PowerPlay, the hosts will remain a strong team to take on.
ALSO READ: Dhoni returns as CSK captain for IPL 2025 after Ruturaj Gaikwad’s injury
“It doesn’t matter if any team shows intent or not; our planning will always be on point. Just because we have seen a few games where 100 runs have been scored at the powerplay, it does not mean that a 60 or 65 for one is not a good powerplay,” the all-rounder said.
“We rate them as a highly skilled team, and we will look to go out there and do our business and play the game and win.”
Venkatesh reserved special praise for local boy Varun Chakaravarthy, who has been in top form in the lead-up to the competition, playing a key role in India’s Champions Trophy triumph.
“Irrespective of the conditions, I think Varun is a world-class spinner now. He delivers when it matters the most. But, playing in his home ground is going to be of huge importance [to him],” the southpaw said.
“It [familiarity with conditions] is going to be a huge factor as well, considering that Ajinkya [Rahane] and Moeen Ali played here for two years. I think we have got a good think tank with regards to how this pitch will play, and our plans are intact,” he added.
KKR suffered a close 4-run loss in its previous encounter against the Lucknow Super Giants, with franchise veteran Andre Russell once again failing to see the team across in the chase. Venkatesh dismissed claims that compromising the West Indies star’s entry point could be a reason for the lower-order struggles.
“The entry point of batters is everything when it comes to T20. But, in a team like KKR where the batting order has the firepower to finish the games on a high, it is not much of a talk,” the vice-captain said.
“Dre [Russell] has been doing this for a very long time. But, we have got able competition for him as well. There are a lot of grounds where we also have to consider maintaining a left-right combination too,” he opined.