As Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) gear up for their must-win clash against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on May 20 at Eden Gardens, their opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz is looking for revenge against his Afghan teammate Naveen-ul-Haq. Gurbaz said that he wants to 'settle scores' with LSG pacer who has been teasing him after getting the better of him in practice matches.
‘I’m gonna hit him'
"In practice matches he (Naveen) got me out every time, and he always keeps telling me that 'I got you out, I got you out'... But once the real time comes, I'm gonna hit him," Gurbaz said on a lighter note in an interaction posted in KKR Knight Club.
Gurbaz further added that he wants to smash Naveen for maximums at KKR's homeground.
"I met him once in a T10 match and hit him for some boundaries. But this time, I hope I hit him for some sixes," said KKR’s wicketkeeper-batter.
Naveen's maiden IPL season
Naveen made headlines when he had a verbal spat with Kohli at Ekana Cricket Stadium which led to him getting fined 50 per cent of his match fee. In LSG’s previous clash against Mumbai Indians (MI) Naveen bowled an expensive penultimate over and conceded 47 runs from his quota of four overs.
"He's one of the best bowlers in the T20 circuit. He's very smart and very skillful bowler," Gurbaz said.
The 22-year-old has scored 217 runs from 10 innings in his debut IPL season including two half-centuries. He has scored runs at an impressive strike rate of 140.
LSG, KKR desperate for a win
Placed third on the points table, LSG need a win to cement their place in the playoffs whereas KKR will not be guaranteed a spot even if they win by a big margin.
"LSG are a good team and have the momentum. But we also won our last match. We will try our best to make it possible," the opener said.
With hopes of making it to playoffs depending on various permutations and combinations, Gurbaz said that he wants to focus on boosting their NRR.
"But we will give our best to win by very good NRR and hope everything works in our favour.
"But (fans) please don't be disappointed, if we fail to make it. We tried our best and will make it happen next year. Believe in ourselves," he concluded.
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