Kolkata, May 7 (UNI) Kolkata Knight Riders rode on impactful cameos from skipper Ajinkya Rahane and Andre Russell to post a competitive 179 for 6 in their 20 overs against Chennai Super Kings, even as left-arm spinner Noor Ahmad rocked the middle order with a four-wicket haul in Match 57 of the Indian Premier League at Eden Gardens here on Wednesday.
Opting to bat first after winning the toss, KKR got off to a brisk start with Rahmanullah Gurbaz dispatching the first ball of the match for four and later launching Anshul Kamboj for a towering six. However, Kamboj struck back in the same over, removing Gurbaz for 11 (9 balls) as Noor Ahmad held on to a sharp catch at mid-wicket.
Sunil Narine (26 off 17) continued the charge, slapping boundaries off Ravichandran Ashwin and Kamboj, including a lofted six over mid-off to bring up KKR’s 50 in just the fifth over. Narine’s aggressive innings ended when he was stumped off Noor Ahmad in the eighth over, as M S Dhoni showed his class behind the stumps.
Young Angkrish Raghuvanshi followed soon after, edging a googly from Noor to Dhoni, leaving KKR at 71/3.
Captain Rahane then anchored the innings with elegance, producing a fine array of strokes. He scooped Kamboj for six, drove through cover, and brought up the 50-run stand with Narine before eventually falling for 48 off 33 balls to Ravindra Jadeja while attempting a reverse sweep.
Russell, who walked in after Rahane’s dismissal, was at his destructive best, smashing Jadeja, Pathirana, and Noor for boundaries and sixes, including a massive slog-sweep into the stand and a fierce slap over cover. He raced to 38 off just 21 balls before being caught at long-off by Dewald Brevis, again off Noor Ahmad, who was weaving magic through the middle overs.
Rinku Singh tried to play the finisher’s role, reverse-sweeping Noor for four and guiding a full toss from Pathirana to third man for another boundary. However, he perished for 9 off 6, caught brilliantly on the boundary by Ayush Mhatre, who juggled and held on to a stunning catch inches inside the rope.
Manish Pandey held the lower middle order together with an unbeaten 36 off 28 balls, clubbing a six over midwicket and swatting a short googly for four in the 19th over. Ramandeep Singh chipped in with a run-a-ball 4, including a fine glance off Pathirana that would have gone for four but for a sharp diving save by Dhoni.
Noor Ahmad was the standout bowler, finishing with figures of 4 for 31, accounting for Narine, Raghuvanshi, Russell, and Rinku. Jadeja and Kamboj took one wicket apiece, while Pathirana and Khaleel went wicketless but contained the scoring to an extent at the death.
KKR’s innings, packed with 16 fours and eight sixes, promises an exciting chase as CSK look to hunt down 180 under lights at Eden.
