IPL 2021: KKR vs DC Review – Kolkata prevail in a low-scoring thriller

Kolkata Knight Riders continued their march towards the playoffs as they defeated Delhi Capitals in Sharjah Cricket ground by three wickets, making it their fifth win of the tournament and third in four games in the UAE leg. KKR had a disciplined performance with the ball, which in return helped them to get these two points.

Earlier in the afternoon, Kolkata Knight Riders won the toss and elected to bat. The wicket was slow and the KKR bowlers were well managed by their skipper as Delhi batters struggled to read the pace of the pitch. Steve Smith opened the innings, scoring 39 runs from 34 balls. Shikhar Dhawan got 24 runs from 20 balls, while Rishabh Pant struggled through to his 36-ball 39. Apart from these three, no one was able to cross the double-figure mark.

Lockie Ferguson bowled only two overs but got the wickets of Smith and Dhawan. Sunil Narine ended with 2 for 18 while Venkatesh Iyer took 2 for 29 in their four overs respectively. Tim Southee, who made his KKR debut, also got a scalp. Delhi ended with 127 for 9.

Kolkata’s chase was completely start-stop with batters getting in and getting out. Shubman Gill made 30 runs from 33 balls, Iyer got 14 while Dinesh Karthik got 12. All those runs came in handy as KKR got closer to the chase. Nitish Rana played a calm and composed knock of 36 runs from 27 balls.

But, if there was any knock that took the game completely away from Delhi, it was Sunil Narine’s brisk 10-ball cameo where he scored 21 runs. Avesh Khan was the pick of the Delhi bowlers and ended with figures of 3 for 13 in three overs. In the end, KKR won the match with 10 balls to spare.

Top performers:

Sunil Narine:

The Sharjah pitch in this game was ideal for someone like Narine. He gave just 18 runs in his four overs and also picked up wickets of Shreyas Iyer and Lalit Yadav. Later, when the chase was going to tricky waters, he took on Kagiso Rabada, hitting six, four and six to change the course of the match.

Venkatesh Iyer: The Madhya Pradesh all-rounder had only bowled one over in this tournament so far. He had to take the responsibility of bowling towards the back end of the innings with Ferguson not being able to complete his four overs. Iyer didn’t disappoint his captain by nailing the yorkers properly at will. He also dismissed Shimron Hetmyer and Axar Patel.

Personal achievements/records:

• Delhi didn’t hit a six during their innings. This was the first IPL match in Sharjah where an innings saw no sixes. Kolkata hit seven.
• Rishabh Pant completed 3000 runs in T20s as a Wicketkeeper.

Way Ahead:

Kolkata will now meet Punjab on October 1 while Delhi will face Mumbai on October 2.