Russell and Rinku Seal KKR’s Win in Last Ball Thriller
A nail-biting match between the Kolkata Knight Riders and the Punjab Kings ended with KKR winning by two wickets in the last over of the game. The contest was set up by KKR’s spinners, who restricted PBKS to just 123 for five in their twenty overs.
Nitish Rana then scored 51 runs off 38 balls, and Andre Russell made an appearance just in time to turn the game around with 20 runs off Sam Curran’s 19th over. Rinku Singh hit the winning runs on the last ball, leaving both teams tied with 10 points from 11 matches.
The PBKS decided to bat first, expecting the spinners to be effective on the slow pitch. Prabhsimran Singh hit three boundaries in the first over by using Vaibhav Arora’s inswing. However, the impressive Harshit Rana took the first wicket, trapping Livingstone in front with a beautiful leg-break. Varun Chakravarthy also produced a breakthrough in the 13th over, spinning the ball away from Jitesh Sharma, and taking the edge through to the keeper.
The Highlights
KKR spinners were successful in tying down PBKS on a slow pitch with 13 overs of spin, which brought them just 92 runs for five wickets. PBKS came back to life as soon as KKR went back to pace for the last two overs and took 36 runs to make a total of 87 from just seven overs of pace.
In reply, Nathan Ellis gave the PBKS an early lead by flummoxing Rahmanullah Gurbaz with his slower ball. With Venkatesh Iyer not allowed to bat at No. 3 at that moment, KKR needed something special. Jason Roy and Nitish Rana managed to hit Livingstone for five boundaries in his two overs, softening the blow of KKR losing Roy to Harpreet Brar.
Rahul Chahar turned up for PBKS with the wickets of Iyer and Rana, leaving KKR with a challenging target of 56 runs off 28 balls. Andre Russell then turned up to turn the game around, hitting two sixes over the bigger boundary off Sam Curran’s 19th over. KKR required six runs off the last over, and Rinku Singh hit the winning runs on the last ball, leaving both teams tied with 10 points from 11 matches.
After the Match
In the post match interviews, Andre Russell, a proven match-winner for KKR, praised Rinku for taking the pressure off him. Nitish Rana, the team captain, lauded Rinku for his hard work and self-belief. The entire Eden Gardens crowd cheered for Rinku during his innings, a sign of the respect he has earned this season. With Rinku and Russell in fine form, KKR is well-placed to make a deep run in the playoffs.
In conclusion, the KKR spinners were successful in tying down the PBKS on a slow pitch, and their batters hung on by the skin of their teeth, both in the match against PBKS and in the tournament. The result left both teams level at 10 points from 11 matches, with five teams currently tied on that points total in the middle of the table.
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