Kolkata Knight Riders finished the league stage as the No. 1 team and they played like the best side of the tournament tonight. They restricted a strong Sunrisers Hyderabad batting line-up to 159 before making a mockery of the 160-run chase by completing it inside 14 overs. With this win, KKR will go to Chennai to play their fourth final. SRH will also go to Chennai to play the Qualifier 2.
The Mitchell Starc show
When the occasion demanded it, Mitchell Starc rose to the occasion. In a crucial game, he charged in and delivered a match-defining spell. His lengths were impeccable, and he got the ball to swing both ways. He varied his deliveries brilliantly; bowling full in the first over to exploit the swing, and generating noticeable zip and bounce when he bowled a tad short. He went full and moved the ball around to breach the defence of Travis Head. Next up, Starc banged it short and got the wicket of Nitish Reddy. Against Shahbaz Ahmed, he bowled a nagging line and length. Shahbaz’s lack of feet movement on the poke meant he got a thick inside edge that flew back to dislodge the middle stump. Starc set the tone, and his new ball partner, Vaibhav Arora, followed it up with a wicket from the other end. SRH were reduced to 45/4, their third lowest Powerplay score this season.
Tripathi and Cummins give SRH hope
SRH’s dependable openers were back in the hut early in the innings, and soon the Orange Army found themselves at 39-4. Despite the wickets tumbling around him, Rahul Tripathi, who narrowly escaped an LBW decision early in his innings, took calculated risks and kept the scoreboard ticking. Heinrich Klaasen took some time to settle but was dismissed just as he started to accelerate. The situation worsened with a mix-up that led to Tripathi’s run-out after a well-played 55. Abdul Samad attempted to launch a counter-attack but couldn’t stay at the crease for long. At 126-9, Hyderabad were in dire straits, but Pat Cummins stepped up and took the game deep. He found a capable partner in Vijayakanth Viyaskanth, and through Cummins’ crucial 30-run knock, SRH managed to reach 159.
Rapid start from KKR
After reducing SRH to a below-par total, KKR’s new opening pair, Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Sunil Narine, came out with aggressive intent. They attacked the bowlers right from the start. Although Gurbaz fell against the run of play, he had already laid a solid foundation. SRH bowlers had no luck, with the ball frequently missing the outside edges. Everything seemed to favour KKR. Venkatesh Iyer joined Narine and ensured the momentum didn’t drop. By the end of the Powerplay, KKR were 63/1, reducing the equation to a run-a-ball. SRH’s only hope was to take early wickets, but that didn’t happen, and KKR got off to a flying start.
Venkatesh, Shreyas hit fifties
When Venkatesh Iyer walked in, the platform was already set with the current run rate hovering over 10 runs per over. He just needed to play his part. Prior to this game, Venkatesh had been averaging over 40 in the Powerplays, and once again, he stepped up, scoring an unbeaten fifty. Shreyas Iyer also enjoyed his time at the crease, outscoring Venkatesh by hitting Head for 22 runs to bring up his own fifty and seal the game.