"Always been fan of cricket": Former England manager Southgate soaks in Rajasthan-Kolkata thriller

Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], May 5 (ANI): Former England men's football team head coach Gareth Southgate opened up about his love for cricket and his "amazing" experience of visiting India for the first time in his life.

Southgate witnessed the nerve-racking thriller between the defending champions, Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals, at the iconic Eden Gardens on an action-packed Sunday in the 18th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).

In the pulsating fixture, momentum oscillated both ways. Rajasthan's 206-run chase went right down to the wire, and Kolkata escaped with a slender one-run victory to keep its title defence alive by the barest of margins.

Southgate, who witnessed the T20 marvel at Eden, took a trip down memory lane and recalled the time when he used to watch Test cricket all day long, in an era where legendary Kapil Dev and Sunil Gavaskar used to enchant the spectators with their dazzling performances.

"Very often, when you play at Wembley, the crowd is a little bit quieter. I have always been a fan of cricket. When I was a young kid, I used to watch Test matches all day long. I mean, I am going back to the era of Kapil Dev, Sunil Gavaskar and players like that and then over the years, I got to know a lot of the players when I was playing for England, and I knew a lot of the England team. Last year, Ben Stokes came and talked to the England team. Also, with a lot of coaches, you learn a lot across sports, so that's really why I am here," Southgate said in a video posted by IPL and Rajasthan Royals on Instagram.

"Every sport is evolving rapidly, so much that coaches share, medical teams share, and yeah, it's always fascinating to go outside your field and learn from other people. As I said, I love the sport. So it's lovely to come here, and I have loved coming to India. It is the first time I have been to India. It has been amazing," he added.

The Royals and Knight Riders combined to tonk 16 maximums throughout the nervy affair. In a fixture where sixes filled Kolkata's sky, Southgate was also asked to rate his six-hitting ability, to which he jokingly replied, "One".

Coming to the fixture, Andre Russell fuelled Kolkata's innings with his swashbuckling 57* from a mere 25 deliveries. Young Angkrish Raghuvanshi played the supporting role with his belligerent 44(31), which propelled Kolkata to a daunting 206/4.

In reply, stand-in captain Riyan Parag beamed confidently and delivered a rollicking 95(45) to take his side closer to the sweet taste of victory. However, his efforts went in vain as they agonisingly fell short by a run. (ANI)

(The story has come from a syndicated feed and has not been edited by the Tribune Staff.)