We need to improve in a lot of areas because we haven’t clicked as a group, Rathore

“The pivotal moment was when Riyan Parag left.” Rathore added that the team hasn’t clicked as a whole, which has cost them games. “I’m sure he would have finished it off if he was in there,” he said.

At a pivotal point in the qualification process, the home team was naturally in good spirits after a thrilling last-ball match at the Eden Gardens that was won by the Kolkata Knight Riders by a single run. “Such wins will give us the momentum and give us the self-belief that we can pull tight wins,” Varun Chakaravarthy stated. “This is exactly what we needed, and we are confident we can pull off the next three matches.”

The Rajasthan Royals, on the other hand, were devastated by their failure to win another game. They have had a close but unsuccessful season due to their Super Over loss to the Delhi Capitals, their 2-run loss to the Lucknow Super Giants, their 11-run loss to Royal Challengers Bengaluru, and now their 1-run loss to KKR.

“If my calculations are correct, this is the fourth game in which we were in a position to win but were unable to do so.

“That is the type of season we have had,” remarked RR’s batting coach Vikram Rathore.

KKR was able to thread together a few tight deliveries after Riyan Parag, the stand-in captain, was dismissed in the 18th over to Harshit Rana’s slower ball. Parag struck 95 off 45 and even hammered Moeen Ali for five sixes in one over, giving the impression that he would lead his team home. It meant that Shubham Dubey’s cameo wasn’t good enough with 22 runs needed to be scored off the last over.

“Almost every batter has scored a run. They are batting effectively in the nets and are in good shape. However, it hasn’t been occurring all at once. In the same way, we have witnessed some excellent individual bowling performances, but perhaps we haven’t bonded as a team. Perhaps fielding hasn’t made much of a difference. One thing we have overlooked is that. There were a lot of things that went wrong for us this season, and there are a lot of things that we need to work on and improve.

“The quality is not a problem. Our batting is of very high grade. We couldn’t shut down the game and complete it. We will be a very strong hitting lineup and a formidable opponent in the upcoming seasons, I’m confident.”

Rathore also mentioned Jos Buttler’s departure from RR. The overseas batter that was kept on, Shimron Hetmyer, has had a very poor season.

Rathore remarked, “I won’t say it was a mistake,” You could have kept only six, of course. The six that we have kept have the management’s approval. Hetty is meant to be the finisher, but he hasn’t had the kind of season that he needs.

“He plays exceptionally well. He has accomplished that in the past, performing well in league, franchise, and international cricket. He hasn’t been able to complete the games this year. That was essentially his role. Seasons like that are acceptable to people. I’ve played cricket enough to know that even the best players have lean times. Unfortunately, as is sometimes the case, Hetty had a bad season this year. I don’t believe we have a problem with the finishers if he had a strong season and we are confident he can get better.”