Kolkata bow out on a high note

At the end of an otherwise ordinary season, the Kolkata Knight Riders gave their fans something to cheer about, with a thrilling win over Kings XI Punjab. Though, the first season has been dismal for the Knight Riders, they will surely take heart from the positives from their final go at the Eden.

Sourav Ganguly's Kolkata Knight Riders finally gave their home fans something to cheer about as they ended their IPL campaign with a thrilling three-wicket win over Kings XI Punjab.

With the Knight Riders already out of contention, there was little resting on the match for them, apart from a chance to redeem themselves in front of their home fans.

"When you lose about five or six of of your main players, you obviously struggle. But that is the way it is as it is a learning process - it is a learning process for all of us. It is my first full twenty20 competition in my 14 years of career. So, we are all learning and I hope we all come back better next year," said Kolkata team capatin Sourav Ganguly.

With 6 wins and 7 losses in their 14 IPL matches, the Knight Riders ended up on with more losses than wins but undeterred by the team's dismal show, Shah Rukh Khan reminded everyone yet again he will back his team to the hilt, as he gifted each member of his team - a gold helmet.

"I think he has been a fantastic owner. He is more like a teammate to us than an owner and he has been supporting to us throughout. And the best thing about our team is that we have all gelled together very well,' said Shoiab Akhtar.

"At this point of time, you can only think that next year we can do better. I don't look back. This is the team that we choose and this is the team we will stick with," said Shah Rukh Khan.

With 349 runs in 13 matches, Sourav Ganguly emerged as the highest scorer for the Knight Riders..and he is hopeful of a better show next season.

"We have had a good bowling attack and we fielded brilliantly right throughout this tournament, so there have been a lot of positives. Youngsters have shown good form in patches and I hope that they have a year to learn to work on their game and come back well next year," said the former India skipper.

While the Knight Riders failed to impress much in the tournament, their inspired performance against Kings XI at least gave their fans a reason to cheer about till the next season.