Ajinkya Rahane had hit back at his critics for questioning his strike rate after he scored eight runs off 10 balls in Kolkata Knight Riders match against Sunrisers Hyderabad. The KKR skipper alleged that people critising him are “just jealous” of him, and stated that his strike rate is one of the best for any top-order batter in the last three years of the IPL.
“The people who’re talking about me, probably (they’re) not watching the matches, or they’ve certain other targets, they don’t like me playing. The amount of success I got, I guess, they’re jealous of me. I’m happy they’re talking about me, negative or positive,” Rahane told reporters in the post-match press conference after the game against Sunrisers.
Meanwhile, former New Zealand pacer Simon Doull has come out in support of Rahane and said that his numbers are indeed better than Rohit Sharma and equal to Ishan Kishan.
“His numbers in the last four years have not been that bad. He averages 30 and strikes at 148 over 30-odd games. People are talking about dropping him. It’s a better record than what Rohit has got in the last four years,” Doull was quoted saying on Cricbuzz.
“It’s an equal record to Ishan Kishan in the last four years. You are not talking about dropping any of those blokes. Hence his frustration. But it comes down to the pressure from a captaincy point of view,” he added.
Doull added that the criticism directed at the 37-year-old largely stems from KKR’s poor start to IPL 2026, as well as their eighth-place finish last season under his leadership.
“The criticism came with them finishing eighth last year and having a bad start this year. He is frustrated because they don’t have the tools in the toolbox. They are not doing their job and are not playing well as a group. It’s not all his fault,” said Doull.
KKR, the three-time champions, got a lucky escape on Monday as their match against Punjab Kings was called off due to rain. They picked up one point despite being in trouble at 25 for 2 in the fourth over after choosing to bat under cloudy conditions. KKR are still searching for their first win in IPL 2026, having already lost to Mumbai Indians and Sunrisers Hyderabad.
