KOLKATA: Riyan Parag was brilliant, but in the end, Andre Russell 's power prevailed. But not before a last-ball thriller sent the hearts pounding. With 22 required off the last over, Rajasthan Royals almost got there, losing to Kolkata Knight Riders by a mere one run at the Eden Gardens on Sunday.
Needing three off the last ball, Royals batters Subham Dubey and Jofra Archer scampered for two runs, failing to complete the second. Quick-thinking Rinku Singh ensured Archer was short of his crease and the celebrations resembled KKR's trophy-winning triumph last season.
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This win will surely give confidence to KKR going forward. And they have many positives to draw inspiration from. The first being big burly Jamaican Russell, who finally arrived with his muscles as KKR remained alive in their quest for a qualifiers spot.
Who's that IPL player?
Veteran Russell, who had a rather disappointing tournament so far with the bat, scoring just 72 runs in 10 innings, added another 57 off just 25 balls, remaining unbeaten and in the process taking the KKR score to 206 for four, a chase that proved tantalizingly out of Royals reach, who finished at 205 for eight. Even Royals skipper Parag's blazing 95 proved inadequate.
When it looked as if the Royals would cave in meekly, Parag threatened to change the script with six consecutive sixes (not taking a wide into account), five off Moeen Ali and one off Varun Chakravarthy. All clean hits that gave them hope of a dramatic turnaround.
However, Parag was fighting a lone battle. Yashasvi Jaiswal's 34 and Shimron Hetmyer's 29 were never going to be enough. Dubey tried to finish it off with his unbeaten 25, but it was not to be.
On a wicket that was helping spinners, Russell's innings stood out for its sheer power.
More than the Jamaican's runs, it was the timing of his innings that made it look so special. With the Knights striving to step on the accelerator at 121 for three after 15 overs, they desperately needed Russell to join in with his strong arms.
Russell did just that, smashing the Royals bowlers all over the park as the defending champions amassed 85 runs in the last five overs.
There were also Angkrish Raghuvanshi's 44 and Rinku Singh's six-ball 19 adding to the flourishing finish.
The ruthless aggression started in the 16th over, with Akash Madhwal conceding 15. Jofra Archer's brilliant first two-over spell went for a toss as he eventually gave away 30 in his four. Spinner Maheesh Theeksana's 18 in three overs became 41 in four. The game had turned on its head.
The Russell mayhem followed a much slower 15 overs with Rahmanullah Gurbaz (35) and Ajinkya Rahane (30) going steady. An over the bowler's head six was the KKR skipper's standout shot.
Needing three off the last ball, Royals batters Subham Dubey and Jofra Archer scampered for two runs, failing to complete the second. Quick-thinking Rinku Singh ensured Archer was short of his crease and the celebrations resembled KKR's trophy-winning triumph last season.
Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel.
This win will surely give confidence to KKR going forward. And they have many positives to draw inspiration from. The first being big burly Jamaican Russell, who finally arrived with his muscles as KKR remained alive in their quest for a qualifiers spot.
Who's that IPL player?
Veteran Russell, who had a rather disappointing tournament so far with the bat, scoring just 72 runs in 10 innings, added another 57 off just 25 balls, remaining unbeaten and in the process taking the KKR score to 206 for four, a chase that proved tantalizingly out of Royals reach, who finished at 205 for eight. Even Royals skipper Parag's blazing 95 proved inadequate.
When it looked as if the Royals would cave in meekly, Parag threatened to change the script with six consecutive sixes (not taking a wide into account), five off Moeen Ali and one off Varun Chakravarthy. All clean hits that gave them hope of a dramatic turnaround.
However, Parag was fighting a lone battle. Yashasvi Jaiswal's 34 and Shimron Hetmyer's 29 were never going to be enough. Dubey tried to finish it off with his unbeaten 25, but it was not to be.
On a wicket that was helping spinners, Russell's innings stood out for its sheer power.
More than the Jamaican's runs, it was the timing of his innings that made it look so special. With the Knights striving to step on the accelerator at 121 for three after 15 overs, they desperately needed Russell to join in with his strong arms.
Russell did just that, smashing the Royals bowlers all over the park as the defending champions amassed 85 runs in the last five overs.
There were also Angkrish Raghuvanshi's 44 and Rinku Singh's six-ball 19 adding to the flourishing finish.
The ruthless aggression started in the 16th over, with Akash Madhwal conceding 15. Jofra Archer's brilliant first two-over spell went for a toss as he eventually gave away 30 in his four. Spinner Maheesh Theeksana's 18 in three overs became 41 in four. The game had turned on its head.
The Russell mayhem followed a much slower 15 overs with Rahmanullah Gurbaz (35) and Ajinkya Rahane (30) going steady. An over the bowler's head six was the KKR skipper's standout shot.
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