Spinner Sunil Narine completed 200 wickets for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), becoming the first player from the team to do so
Our Bureau
Kolkata
New Zealand pacer Jacob Duffy opened up on being crowned as the number one T20I bowler in the ICC T20I rankings, calling his rise to the top of the table as “bit of a surprise”.
Duffy was rewarded for his recent heroics in the series against Pakistan as he reigned supreme in the latest ICC Men’s T20I Bowling Rankings.
Opening up on his achievement, Duffy told New Zealand Cricket as quoted by ICC, “It is a bit of a surprise. It is awesome to be amongst some of the players on that list. Getting that kind of recognition is pretty cool.”
“I honestly do not know what to say. I have had a lot of messages today around that kind of thing. It is a little bit surreal, to be honest,” he added.
Duffy became the first New Zealand player to hold the premier bowling ranking in men’s T20I cricket since spinner Ish Sodhi in 2018.
The 30-year-old rose to four spots in the latest rankings to leap past Wanindu Hasaranga, Adil Rashid, Varun Chakravarthy and Akeal Hosein, who held the top spot previously.
In the absence of first-team regulars such as Matt Henry and Kyle Jamieson, Duffy emerged as an impressive pacer for New Zealand. In the recent T20I series against Pakistan, he bagged an impressive 13 wickets from his five outings at an average of 8.38 as New Zealand emerged victorious 4-1.
Duffy is also currently the joint-highest wicket-taker in the ODI series against Pakistan, with five dismissals from the two matches so far.
“It has been amazing, just to be in and around the group for the last three or four years, sort of getting a game here and there, but to really get stuck in and play consistent games, get whole series, it has been awesome,” he added.
“I just want to be a regular member of the Black Caps across all three formats and win games of cricket for the country.”
Having gained an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series, New Zealand will lock horns in the third and last ODI on Saturday, 5 April in Mount Maunganui.
Meanwhile, Spinner Sunil Narine completed 200 wickets for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), becoming the first player from the team to do so. Narine reached this milestone during his side’s Indian Premier League (IPL) match against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Thursday. During the game, Narine bowled a four-over spell in which he gave away 30 runs and took the wicket of Kamindu Mendis.
Now in 189 matches for KKR since debut in 2012, Narine has taken 200 wickets at an average of 24.14, with best figures of 5/19, his solitary five-wicket haul. He also has eight four-wicket hauls.
Narine is the fourth-highest wicket-taker in IPL history, with 182 wickets at an average of 25.60 in 180 matches, with best figures of 5/19. His rest of the wickets for KKR have come in the now-defunct Champions League T20 competition, where he took 18 scalps in nine matches.
KKR dynamic batter Rinku Singh recently appeared on the latest episode of Knight Club on JioHotstar, where he shared insights into his toughest bowling opponent, his teammates, and his personal favourites.
Among his Kolkata Knight Riders teammates, Rinku Singh was particularly curious about the enigmatic Sunil Narine. When asked what he would like to ask Narine, he responded with a lighthearted yet intriguing question.
“I just want to ask him–when he takes wickets, why doesn’t he look happy? He doesn’t even smile. I just want to know why,” he said.
Narine, known for his calm demeanour on the field, rarely shows emotions even after significant achievements, leaving fans and teammates equally puzzled.
Talking about his cricketing inspiration, Rinku revealed that former India star Suresh Raina has always been his role model.
