Hyderabad (Telengana) [India], May 3 (ANI): Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) batter Angkrish Raghuvanshi called the team's win over Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on Sunday important and hoped that the team can carry their winning momentum forward in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 season.

Ajinkya Rahane-led KKR produced a disciplined bowling performance to restrict SRH to 165 in the first innings. SRH started aggressively, powered by a quickfire 61 off 27 balls from Travis Head, which helped them race to 105/1 in the ninth over and 107/2 at the halfway stage. Ishan Kishan also supported well with a steady 42, keeping the innings on track for a big total.

However, KKR turned the game around in the middle overs. Varun Chakravarthy (3/36 in 4 overs) led the fightback with key breakthroughs, finishing with three wickets, while Sunil Narine (2/31 in 4 overs) and Kartik Tyagi (2/30 in 4 overs) picked up two each. Anukul Roy, Cameron Green, and Vaibhav Arora also chipped in with a wicket apiece as SRH collapsed from a strong position to be bowled out for 165.

Chasing, 166, Angkrish Raghuvanshi (59 off 47) and Ajinkya Rahane (43 off 36 balls) guided KKR home, with seven wickets and 10 balls remaining.

Raghuvanshi, who won the Player of the Match for his 59, said wins are crucial in a long tournament, noting that gaining momentum now can help the team keep progressing forward.

'In a long tournament, wins are very important. As you saw at the start, when you're not winning, it's tough to come back. But now that we're winning, the momentum can carry us forward, and hopefully we can keep that going,' he said at the post-match press conference as quoted in a release from KKR.

The victory over SRH marked KKR's third straight win of the season, following a poor start in which they suffered five consecutive losses along with a no-result.

Speaking about his 59-run innings, Raghuvanshi said he focused on staying in the moment and simply watching the ball, without overthinking the score, which helped his innings.

'I was just being in the moment and watching the ball. I wasn't thinking too much about the score or anything--just trying to watch the ball, and I think that helped me,' he said. (ANI)