KKR’s powerhouse struck an unbeaten 70 to seal an impressive victory over Punjab Kings at the Wankhede stadium.
PBKS had another disappointing day with the ball in hand, as they threw away what could be a potentially close encounter. It was also a failed batting effort from the Kings, something that they will have to address, considering that they possess one of the most intimidating batting units in the IPL, if not the most. The win sends Shreyas Iyer’s KKR into pole position on the points table, with two wins in three games and a healthy net run-rate to go along with it.
The toss did not present much of a surprise, as Iyer won and decided to go for the seemingly obvious, as he opted to bowl. Kolkata were presumably worried aboutRussell’s ability to bowl after the events of the previous game, and decided to drop Sheldon Jackson to bring in Shivam Mavi, who had himself made way for the experienced Tim Southee in the second game.
It was a sorry start for Punjab with the bat, as captain Mayank Agarwal was trapped in front by Umesh Yadav, who has redefined himself this season. Bhanuka Rajapaksa went back almost as quickly as he came in but did a fair share of damage before departing, as he took the returning Shivam Mavi’s fourth over for 22 runs before getting dismissed to Mavi himself. It looked like Rajapaksa’s cameo had set the tone for the Punjab innings as Liam Livingstone showed some positive intent as soon as he entered into the middle.
Veteran Shikhar Dhawan also had an off day, as he fell to Southee off the penultimate ball of the powerplay, edging it to Billings off an attempted booming cover drive. The Knight Riders dominated proceedings from this point forward, getting regular wickets and stifling the flow of runs. It all went downhill for the Kings until Kagiso Rabada came in and struck a few boundaries to guide his side to a fighting total of 137.
The Kolkata Knight Riders would have expected themselves to make short work of the target, considering that they chased a similar target in the first game against the defending champions Chennai Super Kings. Veteran Ajinkya Rahane was looking good as he struck three boundaries but was dismissed by Rabada against the run of play.
Iyer was in imperious form, as he quickly moved to 26 in 14 balls before Rahul Chahar picked up two quick wickets, dismissing the Knight Riders’ skipper and Rana in the same over to bring Punjab Kings back into the game. Just as the game started slipping away from KKR hands, the ferocious Russell did exactly what he was retained for as he turned the game on its head.
Billings took a backseat in the run-chase, as the powerful Russell took full advantage of some poor captaincy from Mayank Agarwal, as he opted to bowl Harpreet Brar to a dormant Russell, which sprung him into action, as he struck two huge sixes off the left-armer.
There wasn’t much more to say about the game, as Russell just continued the onslaught on the Punjab bowlers, striking a further six towering maximums to bring the Knight Riders to the precipice of victory.
He brought up a classy half-century off just 26 balls in the last few balls of the game, after which he closed out the match in less than an over with three sixes off the last three balls he faced to bring up a lopsided victory for the Kolkata Knight Riders with 33 balls to spare.
Brief scores
Kolkata Knight Riders 141 for 4 (Russell 70*, Shreyas 26, Chahar 2-13) beat Punjab Kings 137 (Rajapaksha 31, Umesh 4-23) by six wickets
