Dinesh Karthik plays KKR captain's knock of 97* vs RR in Kolkata in IPL 2019; watch video

Former IPL champions Kolkata Knight Riders have struggled to build a strong side after ex-captain Gautam Gambhir left the team in 2017. Dinesh Karthik has been captaining the KKR side since the IPL 2018 and while the side boasts of some big hitters like Andre Russell and Sunil Narine, the team has not been able to demonstrate the kind of consistency it would have hoped for. However, KKR have managed to some moments of happiness to its passionate fan-base with some individual performances that would be savoured for years to come.

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IPL 2019: Dinesh Karthik scores 97* at the Eden Gardens

On Monday, the IPL's official account posted another IPL 2019 throwback video when KKR met the Rajasthan Royals (RR) at the Eden Gardens. After RR captain Steve Smith won the toss and bowled first, KKR were in a tough spot after losing their openers Chris Lynn and Shubman Gill in the first five overs, having put only 31 runs on the board. Dinesh Karthik, then, promoted himself up the order and came out all guns blazing. He smashed the RR bowlers around the park for seven fours and nine sixes. KKR ended the innings at 175/6 and Karthik remained unbeaten on 97.

Steve Smith's men, however, made light work of the total and ended up chasing it down with four balls to spare.

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IPL Postponed: Will KKR capture their third IPL trophy?

The IPL 2020 was supposed to begin on March 29 but the BCCI had the IPL postponed after the coronavirus outbreak in the country. The future of IPL 2020 hangs in the balance and multiple factors will be considered before the BCCI announces the fate of the tournament. KKR were supposed to welcome stars like Pat Cummins and Eoin Morgan in the IPL 2020.

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