Brief Scores:
Kolkata Knight Riders 149/9 in 20 overs (Shubman Gill 57, Eoin Morgan 40; Mohammed Shami 3-35, Ravi Bishnoi 2-20, Chris Jordan 2-25)
lost to
Kings XI Punjab (Mandeep Singh 66*, Chris Gayle 58; Lockie Ferguson 1-32) by eight wickets.
Kings XI Punjab added yet another chapter to their last-minute resurgence by lording the 150-run chase against Kolkata Knight Riders in the 46th match of the Indian Premier League 2020. Mandeep Singh and Chris Gayle bagged the honours with contrasting fifties after Mohammed Shami ripped apart KKR's top-order with a scorching three-wicket haul. With five victories on the bounce, thieves KXIP haven't just discovered a window of opportunity but shattered the living daylights out of it to create room to sneak into the empire of playoffs.
Punjab sling from the blocks
KL Rahul and Mandeep Singh scored at a fair clip during the PowerPlay, as KXIP rock and rolled to 36 for nought. Varun Chakravarthy must have been on cloud nine after the unexpected promotion to the blue jersey, and brought home yet another reason to smile with the prized scalp of the Orange Cap holder. The flatter trajectory did the trick, the pushed-through drifter beating Rahul's attempted tuck to ping him on the knee flap. Although Chris Gayle served the mystery dealer a harsh reality check with consecutive thumps out of the park.
Mandy-Gayle make light work
Still coming to grips with the emotional trauma, Mandeep anchored the chase with the sagacity of a monk, hefting his bat to the heavens as a tribute to his late father after registering his maiden half-century of the season. Gayle ploughed the same furrow, notching his 30th IPL fifty forthwith as the equation stooped to 14 off 18. The collaboration toasting a ton concurred with the left-handed dasher perishing on the brink of victory for 51 off just 29 balls. But the damage was already done by then.
Though a bit trivial in the grander scheme of things, Rahul Tripathi was a force to be reckoned with in the outfield tonight, winging across the turf to produce a rocket side-arm flick from deep square leg which almost nabbed Mandeep short of his ground before forbidding a certain boundary with a goalkeeper dive to his right. Contributors of such value purchase themselves more time in the squad and cherish a bit of padding amidst the breakneck competition for slots.
Punjab's new-ball attack a goblet of fire
The sheer volumes of confidence KL Rahul and his troops have procured from their glorious, come-from-behind stint of late was pretty evident to the naked eye. Be it fielders leaving no stone unturned to protect that boundary or pacemen raising hell, KXIP were firing on all cylinders. Part-timer Glenn Maxwell laid the first stone as Nitish Rana buggered up a sweep to short fine leg. Mohammed Shami then put his shoulder to the wheel, peppering the fourth-stump channel to eliminate Rahul Tripathi and Dinesh Karthik in identical fashion, subtle lateral movement grazing the outside edge. The latter even wasted a review owing to the misconception that the inside half of the bat thudded into the pad at the very instant when the cherry wobbled through.
Gill shuts out the noise
Periods of vigilance generally ensue such batting implosions, though the advent of the slam-bang format has ruffled up the dynamics to no end. Shubman Gill and Eoin Morgan threw caution to the wind, slaying their blades with unflappable audacity to frame a counter-punching 81-run stand. The salvo from thin air pegged KXIP on the backfoot, but KL Rahul hurled directives from his vantage point to ensure against a dip in intensity. It was only a matter of one miscue, and the moment of triumph arrived in the 10th over with the southpaw hoicking Ravi Bishnoi down mid-wicket's throat for a sly 40. Floater Sunil Narine followed suit, swinging for the mountains only to witness a hash of his sticks. Having copped a great deal of flak for plying his trade sans urgency in recent times, Gill was a man on a mission to prove his detractors wrong, each stroke from his willow spitting fire en route a brisk 57.
No prizes for guessing, Kolkata underachieve
Robbed off the strike in the death throes, lone wolf Gill bit the dust when an agricultural heave found cow corner, while Pat Cummins trod back in dejection after being falsely adjudged leg-before, with no reviews left in the tank to call for rescue. Spare for a handy 24 by Lockie Ferguson, the tail didn't wag at all, let alone ferociously, as KKR paused for an exigent, below-par total.
What's on the cards next?
KXIP's mind-boggling revival has now stowed a crackerjack of an eleventh-hour tussle for the semi-final berths that are up for grabs. The IPL caravan hits a half-century as the gatecrashers stumble upon fellow contenders Rajasthan Royals in Abu Dhabi on Friday, October 30. Chennai Super Kings are the official party-poopers and will aim to throw a monkey wrench in KKR's jostle for qualification a day earlier on October 29.
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