With a four-wicket haul from Umesh Yadav and Andre Russell returning to his cruel best, Kolkata Knight Riders cruised to a six-wicket victory over Punjab Kings here on Friday.
Umesh (4/23) delivered career-best T20 numbers to help KKR dismiss Punjab for a below-par 137 in 18.2 overs, despite having played just two games in two IPL seasons and going unsold at the auction.
It was meant to be a simple chase, but Punjab’s hopes were lifted when Rahul Chahar bowled a two-wicket maiden to reduce KKR to 51 for four. Russell (70 not out of 31 balls) came out in the middle and altered the game with an eight-sixes blitz, making it a cakewalk in just 14.3 overs.
In an over that yielded 30 runs, he hammered three sixes off Odean Smith. In the meantime, crash! Bang! Wallop! WrestleMania will start on April 2nd, but “Russell-mania” arrived one day early! The Jamaican’s ruthless hitting devastated Punjab’s bowling and dashed the sliver of hope they had for a comeback.
Dre Russ put on an unbelievable batting display, scoring 70 runs off only 31 balls, including two nasty fours and eight massive sixes. Big dude, take a bow! Kolkata was chasing a low-scoring target and, despite losing both openers, got off to a great start in the powerplay.
The Kolkata camp was jittery after Rahul Chahar’s spectacular over, in which he hunted down two wickets, but Sam Billings and Andre Russell joined forces and accomplished the job efficiently.
They took their time at first, respecting the spinners for a while, before Dre Russ went insane. As a starter, he attacked Harpreet Brar’s over, then went hammer and tongs in Odean Smith’s 12th over.
The chase was called off after 30 runs were scored. Punjab only managed 137 points early in the evening. They were in shambles after losing wickets in quick succession and surrendered in front of Umesh Yadav and his team.
Shreyas Iyer’s captaincy wowed everyone, and there were definitely echoes of Brendon McCullum in the way he led.
They would have preferred to be more clinical in the chase, but then we would have missed out on Andre Russell’s masterclass in power hitting.
Mayank Agarwal, the Punjab captain, said that his team did not bat well enough but that they fought hard with the ball and that Russell took the game away from them in the post-match presentation.
On this surface, he believes 170 would have been a decent total. mentions that they got off to a good start but were unable to capitalize. It appears that a game like this is fine to begin with. mentions that the bowlers did a good job of keeping things under control, but Russell was the difference.
Russel stated that he was having fun and enjoying the game, and he also praised Billings, stating that he was also performing well and that he was very confident in his abilities and that he led the team to victory, and he also stated that Sam Billings needed to bat long so that they could be very destructive.
Kolkata captain Shreyas Iyer admits they were taken aback by Punjab’s counter-attacking batting in the powerplay, but he believes they can replicate it.
He goes on to say that they gained early wickets and that his objective after the powerplay was to maintain bowling with the top bowlers and go for the wickets. Both spinners are praised for their holding abilities.
Sunil Narine and Varun Chakaravarthy both have their own unique strategy, which is really useful. Andre Russell’s knock, Shreyas says, was such a relief to watch him bat, and he completely changed the game.
Iyer feels Umesh Yadav’s bowling is getting stronger and fitter as he gets older. He says he’s been putting in the time and effort and is eager to perform.
Iyer’s leadership impressed me. In the middle overs, he summoned Umesh back to ensure that Punjab did not respond.
In the 15th over, he also used a slip and was rewarded with the wicket of Rahul Chahar. In the 12th, Agarwal had no choice but to go with one of the faster bowlers, and he chose Smith over Rabada.
Russell dismantled his fellow Jamaican’s round-the-wicket strategy in the 30-run over. Sam Billings, who kept his cool throughout the game, cashed in a free hit on the final pitch of the game.
Russell maintained his lack of vanity by playing Chahar’s final over even though the asking rate was under four per over. In the 15th over, he took Knight Riders home with consecutive sixes off Livingstone. Then it’s almost the ideal starting place.
Published By: Manan Khurana
Edited By: Khushi thakur
