Kolkata Knight Riders have made a horrific start in their ongoing IPL 2026 match against Sunrisers Hyderabad today (April 2, 2026) at the Eden Gardens.
Winning the Toss, KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane chose to bowl but his bowlers have let him down massively with their clueless bowling so far.
Abhishek Sharma and Travis Head fed on the KKR bowlers as they scored 84 runs at the end of the Powerplay, the most this season so far.
Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma formed a blistering opening partnership, with Head scoring 36 off 17 balls before getting out. Abhishek Sharma remains unbeaten on 45 off just 18 deliveries. Ishan Kishan has come in at number three and is on 2. SRH are firmly in control, and the win probability heavily favours them at this stage.
The SRH openers have dominated the KKR bowling attack right from the start. Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma punished anything loose, hitting multiple boundaries and sixes. The only wicket to fall so far came from Kartik Tyagi, but even that did not slow down the scoring momentum significantly.KKR's bowling performance in the PowerPlay has been highly disappointing, especially given the home conditions at Eden Gardens. Vaibhav Arora leaked runs early on. Kartik Tyagi managed to pick up the wicket of Head but still conceded runs at a high rate, including wides and a six. Sunil Narine has been the most economical bowler so far, offering some control with his variations, though he has not been completely untouched.
Varun Chakravarthy continues Poor Run
However, the biggest concern for KKR has been Varun Chakravarthy, who bowled one over that went for 25 runs. This has continued his poor form from the previous match against Mumbai Indians, where he went wicketless for 48 runs in four overs. His mystery spin appears to have lost its effectiveness, as batters are picking his variations comfortably and attacking him, particularly in the PowerPlay against left-handers.
KKR vs SRH: Fans React to KKR's Gloom Show
Captain Ajinkya Rahane's decision to use Varun early in the PowerPlay against such aggressive openers has drawn sharp criticism.
"Varun against left handers and that too in PP is the worst captaincy decision I feel," a fan wrote on X.
One user was blunt: "KKR fans off ur tv as KKR bowling coach has done no homework. To be honest Varun needs help. He needs to be dropped from the team. SRH scoring today 300,"
"Poor plans, poor bowling changes and poor execution!! KKR has already gifted this to SRH," another fan wrote.
