Riding on Jason Roy’s fiery fifty, Kolkata Knight Riders snapped their four-match dropping streak with a 21-win over Royal Challengers Bangalore within the IPL, on Wednesday. KKR posted a complete of 200 runs on the M Chinnaswamy Stadium courtesy some explosive batting by their middle-order. However, the total credit score doesn’t go to the KKR batters as they got a couple of lifelines by RCB fielders Mohammed Siraj and Harshal Patel as each dropped catches at some essential moments of the sport.
Leading the aspect in absence of Faf Du Plessis, Kohli struck a 34-ball 54 and saved their hopes up within the 201-run chase after du Plessis (17) Glenn Maxwell (5) fell cheaply. But all hell broke free when Venkatesh Iyer took a recreation game-changing catch at deep midwicket boundary to dismiss Kohli, off Russell. He dived to his left and rolled over however held the ball firmly as Kohli walked again in disbelief.
With 86 wanted from 48 balls, it was left for Dinesh Karthik (22) to maintain up their chase however Chakravarthy had the final chortle when he had the veteran RCB keeper-batter en path to his three-for, and it appeared throughout for RCB. KKR thus did a double on RCB, having crushed them of their season-opener by 81 runs. The loss once more proved RCB’s over-reliance on their Big Three — Kohli, Du Plessis and Maxwell.
Kohli was not comfortable after the loss as he stated,”We deserved to lose tonight, we weren’t professional tonight in the field”.
Virat Kohli stated “We gifted the game, we were no professional in the field and lots of soft dismissal”. pic.twitter.com/PDcDr5XVYP
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) April 26, 2023
Cruising at 30 for loss, RCB’s flying begin was halted by the spin duo of Sharma and Chakravarthy who gave KKR an ideal begin, sharing three wickets in between them contained in the powerplay (58/3). (IPL 2023: Jason Roy Smashes 4 Sixes In One Over Of Shahbaz Ahmed In Kolkata Knight Riders Vs Royal Challengers Bangalore – Watch)
RCB’s common skipper Fa du Plessis, who sat out solely to be subbed as an Impact Player, checked out his ominous greatest when he smashed Umesh Yadav on each the perimeters of the wicket.
Kohli too was trying in full circulate because the RCB opening duo feasted on the KKR pacers to begin with.
With their trump card spinner Sunil Narine going wicketless in 4 matches, Rana banked fell again on their newest spin package deal Suyash Sharma. It was a transfer that did the trick because the leggie grabbed the prized scalp of du Plessis with a unsuitable one and in his subsequent over he trapped Shahbaz Ahmed (2).
Maxwell then obtained out to Chakravarthy for a second time in as many matches this season which left the RCB’s top-order in a disarray. But there was no letting up from RCB as Mahipal Lomror confirmed his intent, giving Kohli an ideal help because the duo went about their method.
KKR lastly obtained into the act with Roy setting tempo up entrance when he smashed 5 sixes and 4 boundaries as he and Narayan Jagadeesan (27; 29b) gave KKR their greatest ever begin — 83 runs from 56 balls.
KKR’s batting got here on both aspect of Sri Lankan legspin sensation Hasaranga’s two terrific bowling spells as he returned with 4-0-24-2 that brought on sufficient flutter. First, his miserly spell after the powerplay gave the impetus for Vyshak’s double blow when he dismissed Jagadeesan and Roy. But Rana then ensured that they do not lose the momentum as he made full use of his two reprieves — on 5 and 19 — to race to his 21-ball 48 (3×4, 4×6).
KKR’s new-found hero Rinku Singh (18 not out; 10b) then took cost as he smashed two fours and one six to make sure that they attain the 200-mark. David Wiese smacked two sixes to make an unbeaten 12.
Roy confirmed KKR the way it’s finished within the powerplay, blazing his strategy to a 22-ball fifty, his second in a row handy KKR their greatest ever begin this season. The Englishman confirmed his intent towards the likes of RCB new ball bowlers and Mohammed Siraj and David Willey and unleashed his fury when leftarm spinner Ahmed was launched within the final over of the powerplay.
Roy smoked him for 4 sixes in 5 balls in a 25-run over as KKR cruised to their highest powerplay rating this season with 66 for no loss. But all credit score to Hasaranga for a tidy over after the powerplay the place he conceded simply two runs to mount strain on the duo. Vyshak and Harshal Patel too tightened the noose as boundaries all of the sudden dried up and it was all of the extra evident on the duo.
Struggling to get large hits, Jagadeesan was finished in by a Vyshak bouncer, whereas Roy obtained a peach of a supply from the uncapped Indian who obtained an ideal legstump yorker to wash up the Englishman round his legs. (With PTI inputs)
