‘Kya faltu batting kara humne’: Ajinkya Rahane tells Shreyas Iyer during post-match handshake after KKR lose to PBKS

Ajinkya Rahane was dejected, to say the least. Such defeats as a captain are never easy, especially when you had the game in your grasp and an error in your judgment changed everything. Rahane’s Mumbai teammate and a very close friend, Shreyas Iyer, on the other hand, didn’t know how to celebrate. He was out of breath, huffing and puffing but still not thinking twice before screaming his lungs out. Such is cricket. Such is IPL. The beauty of the tournament often lies in what happens between players and support staff after a close match. It’s as if one large family gets together after a hard day at the office. That’s exactly what happened after the Punjab Kings vs Kolkata Knight Riders IPL 2025 match in New Chandigarh on Tuesday (April 15).

Chasing a meagre 112 for victory, Kolkata Knight Riders were cruising at 62 for 3 in 7.3 overs when Rahane’s dismissal turned the match on its head. Punjab King’s leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal bowls a googly, and Rahane missed the big sweep. The ball struck him in front and looked close. He was given out by the on-field and the KKR captain after a brief discussion with partner Angkrish Raghuvanshi, decided to walk off without taking the review.

It turned out to be his worst decision in this tournament, as replays showed the ball’s impact was outside the off-stump, and he would have survived. The wicket changed everything as KKR lost their next five wickets for just 17 runs to slump to 79 for 8 with Chahal claiming 4/12.

Andre Russell raised hopes with a couple of sixes and a boundary in the 14th over but PBKS pacers Arshdeep Singh and Marco Jansen took the last two KKR wickets to bowl them out for 95 and defend the lowest total in IPL history to win the match by 16 runs.

Ajinkya Rahane’s chat with Shreyas Iyer after the match

After PBKS players celebrated their improbable win like there was no tomorrow, the players lined up for the post-match handshake. Rahane led the KKR team out. He had PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer in front of him. It wasn’t easy to understand what Rahane must be going through but his words to Iyer and that too with a big smile on his face, narrated a lot. “Kya faltu batting kari humne,” (What a disastrous batting effort from us) Rahane told Iyer in Mumbaiya hindi before shaking hands and hugging him.

The Internet was flooded with reactions after Rahane’s act as fans deciphered what the KKR captain told his counterpart after a heartbreaking loss. Fans even praised Rahane for being genuine after a poor batting performance.

Speaking after the match, a disappointed Rahane said, “Nothing to explain, we all saw what happened there. Pretty disappointed with the effort. I will take the blame (for his dismissal), played the wrong shot, although it was missing. He was not very sure (his chat with Angkrish Raghuvanshi) after being given out LBW). He said it could be the umpire’s call. I did not want to take a chance at that time, I was not sure as well. That was the discussion.”

“We batted really badly as a batting unit, we take full responsibility. Bowlers did really well on this surface, restricting a strong Punjab batting lineup to 111. As an individual, you still have to be confident and positive. On this wicket, batting with full face (was better). The sweep was pretty hard to play. Keep the intent going but play cricketing shots. We were reckless and should take full responsibility. At the moment, too many things going in my head. It was an easy chase for us. When I go upstairs, need to keep myself calm and then think about what to say to the boys. Still have to be positive. Half of the tournament is still remaining. Have to address this and move forward,” he concluded.