Before the Indian Premier League kicked off, everyone predicted that the two-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders would have a torrid time in the tournament. With Chris Lynn and Andre Russell returning from injury, no one knew how fit or match ready they would be ahead of the first game against Royal Challengers Bangalore. KKR were hit with another crucial blow when Australia pacer Mitchell Starc was ruled out of the tournament due to injury. He was probably their biggest star.

Another brewing question was who would lead the side this season after Gautam Gambhir decided to part ways and head to Delhi. With Manish Pandey, Umesh Yadav, Suryakumar Yadav also not being retained, no one knew which way Kolkata was heading.

Dinesh Karthik was then made skipper. The move, however, was not a big hit and speculation grew that Kolkata were going to have disastrous season. But, despite the many troubles, Kolkata are now sitting pretty on top of the table with three wins and two losses.

Team to beat

After beating Rajasthan Royals on Wednesday, Kolkata moved to six points to cement their spot on the top. On the way, they have beaten Royal Challengers Bangalore and Delhi Daredevils, who were among the frontrunners to win the tournament. Karthik has been marshalling his troops well with everyone contributing with both bat and ball.

But Kolkata’s trump card, after five matches, been Delhi all-rounder Nitish Rana. The former Mumbai Indians player has not only emerged as a reliable cog in the batting order, but has also contributed in a big way with the ball. Rana’s consistency has been impressive and the two back-to-back Man of the Match awards underscore the impact he has had on the team.

The 24-year-old had a superb IPL last season with Mumbai Indians as he scored 333 runs in 13 matches. He was picked up by Mumbai for Rs 20 lakh before, but this year he was bought for Rs 3.4 crore by the Kolkata Knight Riders. For Delhi, in the T20 games, Rana has scored 652 runs in 30 matches with a strike rate of 142.98. With the ball, he picked up four wickets.

In his first game for Kolkata, Rana bagged the wickets of Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers of consecutive deliveries. He then made 34 crucial runs to take his side home. Against Delhi he made 59 of 35 balls but his innings was overshadowed by Russell’s 12-ball 41.

Against Rajasthan, he got the crucial wicket of openers Ajinkya Rahane and D’arcy Short to give Kolkata the break they were looking for as both batsmen were looking dangerous. Then later along with captain Karthik, he took his side to victory with an unbeaten 35.

Rana has had a dream start so far, scoring 162 runs and picking four wickets, being only a part-time bowler for Delhi. He is third on the list of most runs scored by a batsman in the IPL this season.

“I bowl regularly in the nets, and also in domestic cricket. Both games were very important for us, I backed myself both times, and luckily I won man of the match in both games. It’s such a big platform,” said Rana after picking the Man of the Match award against the Rajasthan Royals.

Next up, the Indian jersey?

Now, it will all be about consistency for the young man as Kolkata will look to win their third IPL title. “It was good to see Nitish bat through for us. The only thing I would tell a player like that is be consistent through a long tournament like this, which I’m sure he’s looking forward to doing,” said Karthik during the presentation. Consistency is the key ahead for the entire team as other teams look to dethrone them from the top.

However, like any other player Rana must be aiming for India colours, which is the ultimate dream for Indian cricketers. He played it down when quizzed by Sanjay Manjrekar. “Right now I want to focus on my game and current team,” said Rana. Majrekar replied, “He might not be focusing on an India appearance but we sure are. All he needs is to keep the show going in the IPL.”

With the way Rana is playing, a India debut is very much possible in the near future.