Highlights:
- KKR scored (171/4) against the Rajasthan Royals, who were knocked out at 85 in 16.1 overs.
- Shubman Gill got 56 runs off 44 balls, and Venkatesh Iyer scored 38 runs off 35 balls.
- Shivam Mavi grabbed four wickets, while Lockie Ferguson took three.
Impressive performance with the bat and ball led Kolkata Knight Riders to an 86-run victory against Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2021 Match 54 here on Thursday. After reaching 171/4 in 20 overs, Kolkata exerted pressure from the beginning, causing Rajasthan to collapse to 86 all out in 16.1 overs.
With this victory, Kolkata has secured the last spot in the playoffs. Apart from knocking out Rajasthan, Punjab Kings have been officially eliminated from the league, while Mumbai Indians’ prospects are currently dangling by a thread. Rajasthan Royals (RR) dropped like ninepins in their last league match of the IPL tournament.
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In the power play, they were reduced to 17/4 as Kolkata completely broke the back of the chase. Yashasvi Jaiswal attempted a reverse sweep but failed and was bowled by Shakib Al Hasan on the third delivery of the innings. Sanju Samson nipped Shivam Mavi’s opening delivery to mid-wicket in the following over. Rajasthan was in chaos after Lockie Ferguson hit a double strike in the fourth over.
In the power play, they were reduced to 17/4 as Kolkata completely broke the back of the chase. Yashasvi Jaiswal attempted a reverse sweep but failed and was bowled by Shakib Al Hasan on the third delivery of the innings. Sanju Samson nipped Shivam Mavi’s opening delivery to mid-wicket in the following over. Rajasthan was in chaos after Lockie Ferguson hit a double strike in the fourth over.
Livingstone, Liam A pull off a short ball to deep square leg was top-edged. Two balls later, Anuj Rawat was beaten for pace and caught in front of the stumps. Sunil Narine was hit for a six by Glenn Phillips and Shivam Dube. Phillips, on the other hand, was hurried for pace in the following over and bowled by a straight delivery from Mavi. Mavi got through Dube’s attempted flick to strike the stumps three balls later. Rajasthan was in a free fall from there.
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In the tenth over, Rahul Tewatia’s three boundaries off Mavi helped Rajasthan avoid the embarrassment of having the lowest-ever IPL score. Despite running out of partners from the other end, the all-rounder continued to fight alone, striking boundaries against Chakravarthy, Ferguson, and Narine. Mavi finished Rajasthan’s misery when Tewatia edged to his stumps, giving the right-arm spinner his fourth wicket of the game.
Earlier, Kolkata started slowly but finished up with the highest score in the tournament at Sharjah, due to Shubman Gill’s brilliant 56. Kolkata got off to a slow start, scoring 34/0 in power-play, including four boundaries. Venkatesh Iyer then smashed Jaydev Unadkat for a four through short third man, followed by sixes down the ground and over long-on.
Rahul Tripathi blasted Dube in the 14th over, hitting back-to-back boundaries. Throughout it all, Gill clutched one end while searching for limits in between. Gill reached his fifty off Chetan Sakariya in the 15th over, his second of the season. In the next over, Gill blasted Chris Morris for a boundary.
However, after a wide, Gill mistimed a loft to cover, handing Morris his first wicket of the UAE leg. Sakariya reappeared in the 18th over to upset the stumps of a sweeping Tripathi. Dinesh Karthik and Eoin Morgan delivered some fierce blows in the final few overs to propel Kolkata to a score that was more than enough to secure their sixth victory in the UAE leg of the league.