Cometh the hour, cometh the MVP: Sunil Narine. The Caribbean all-rounder delivered a stellar performance to keep Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) alive in the playoff race, as the defending champions defeated Delhi Capitals (DC) by 14 runs at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Tuesday. With KKR seeking an inspiring performance to turn the tide in their favour, Narine stepped up, scoring a brisk 27 off 16 balls, taking 3/29 in his four overs, and effecting a game-changing run-out of DC’s top-scorer, KL Rahul.
It has not been Narine’s best season, who is a three-time IPL MVP award winner, including one last season, with KKR struggling across all departments. However, in the must-win game against DC, Narine showed his intent from the first ball he faced, off Dushmantha Chameera. The southpaw cleared his front leg and dispatched the ball straight over the bowler’s head for a six—the sixth time Narine has hit a six off the first ball he faced in the IPL, tying the record held by Ravindra Jadeja and Rashid Khan.
Though Narine’s stay at the crease was short and crisp, KKR reached 85/2 in 6.4 overs when he was trapped lbw by Vipraj Nigam. KKR ultimately posted 204/9 in 20 overs. During the chase, DC were at one point cruising at 60/2 in 6.2 overs, with senior batters KL Rahul and Faf du Plessis at the crease.
When KKR needed a spark, Narine provided it with a direct hit that found Rahul short of his crease. However, Narine’s start with the ball was not smooth, as DC skipper Axar Patel took him to task. Additionally, KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane suffered a hand injury in the 12th over and left the field. Rahane was treated with a couple of stitches on his webbing. With vice-captain Venkatesh Iyer already impact-substituted out, Narine assumed the leadership role. He immediately brought back Varun Chakaravarthy in the 13th over as he conceded nine runs in what was his third over.
In the next over, Narine seized control of the match. After conceding a six to Axar off the first ball, he switched to around the wicket and dismissed the DC captain, continuing his cracking run against the South African (42 runs off 54 balls, 2 dismissals, 77.77 SR). His next three balls yielded just two runs before he bamboozled Tristan Stubbs for one.
Narine then replaced Varun with Anukul Roy, who conceded only eight runs in his over. In his final over, Narine dismissed the well-settled du Plessis, and new batter Ashutosh Sharma narrowly escaped being bowled in his first delivery. Narine finished with figures of 3/29 in four overs. He gave the 18th over to Varun, whose mystery spin accounted for Ashutosh and Mitchell Starc in consecutive deliveries, virtually sealing KKR’s victory. Harshit Rana and Andre Russell completed the formalities in the final two overs.
“Bringing himself back at that stage [14th over] was crucial. He got big wickets in that over, and that’s when we started believing in ourselves,” said Russell in the post-match presentation. “Varun had one over at the back end where he picked up two wickets. It shows we have a good unit. We have bowlers to defend such totals. Narine is very active on the field. A lot of guys misjudge him. On the park, he is a leader. He’s been more talkative over the last five years. He enjoys his performance, and that’s evident on the field.”
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