Finn Allen, who led Kolkata Knight Riders to a 29-run victory over Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League on Saturday to keep their playoff hopes alive, claimed that letting go of self-imposed pressure and rediscovering his love of batting had helped him regain his form.
As Kolkata set a massive target of 248 for the opposition, Allen hammered 93 off 35 balls, including four fours and ten sixes. In response, Gujarat managed just 218-4 in 20 overs.
The New Zealand batsman was dropped for three games after managing just 81 runs in his first five games. Earlier this month, he returned to strike an undefeated 100 off 47 balls in his second innings.
“To be honest, at the start of the tournament, I was putting far too much pressure on myself to perform and I was probably a shell of a human for a bit there and it was all self-inflicted,” Reuters quoted Allen telling reporters in Kolkata.
“I love playing cricket, I love batting and I wasn’t enjoying it as much as I should have at the time because I was putting too much pressure on myself. So having those few games off, really did me a good thing.”
Allen claimed that his comeback in the erratic 20-overs style was largely due to a more straightforward strategy and a fresh emphasis on enjoying cricket.
“I think what I really worked on was if I am relaxed and I am enjoying myself and I watch the ball harder, I am in a better position and I am a better cricketer for it. So I think the main thing was to keep enjoying what I was doing, keep learning and pressure is something that I put on myself. We are very blessed to be doing what we do so the pressure was all me,” Allen said.
With two games remaining, Kolkata, in seventh place with 11 points, is still in a close hunt for the top four. On Wednesday, they take on the Mumbai Indians, who have already been eliminated.
