Who won yesterday IPL Match? Top highlights of last night's KKR vs ...

Opener Phil Salt, KKR’s hero against Lucknow Supergiants (LSG), did not last long. When Avesh Khan dismissed him with an incredible returning catch off his own bowling, Salt was 10 off 13 balls. Sunil Narine, on the other hand, looked calmer than usual. He was not hitting every ball he was facing. In fact, he was selective about his choice of shots.

He had the support of 18-year-old Angkrish Raghuvanshi, who showed pure class with his stylish batting at the other end. Together, they put on an 85-run partnership. Angkrish was out in the 11th over for 30 off 18 balls as Sunil Narine continued to smash Rajasthan bowlers out of the park. Kolkata were 106/2.

Shreyas Iyer had a brief stay as Yuzvendra Chahal dismissed the KKR captain, claiming his 199th IPL wicket. Andre Russell came in to bat next but restricted himself from going all-offensive because Narine spared no bowlers at the other end. His free-flowing fours and sixes earned him the first 100 of his career.

Rinku Singh’s quickfire 20 off 9 balls helped KKR reach 223/6 in 20 overs. Rajasthan had a steep target ahead of them. The Royals' innings were quite similar to the Knight Riders. Opener Jos Buttler stayed back and played his shots despite losing mates at the other end.

Yashasvi Jaiswal (19 off 9 balls), Sanju Samson (12 off 8 balls), and Riyan Parag (34 off 14) had a start but could not convert it to big scores. Buttler did not look very comfortable but continued at a moderate pace. He lost Dhruv Jurel (2 off 4 balls), Ravichandran Ashwin (8 off 11 balls) and Shimron Hetmyer (golden duck) one after another.

While the target looked like it was slipping away from RR, Rovman Powell gave them the perfect boost. In the 17th over, he hit Narine for 16 runs off the first three balls. However, seasoned Narine dismissed him and put an end to Powell’s offensive. Buttler was at 67 off 42 balls when Trent Boult joined him.

Buttler took control of the game. He tried facing every ball; Boult sacrificed his wicket and got run out to give Buttler the strike. KKR conceded five wides due to a misfield by wicket-keeper Phil Salt, and Rajasthan made 18 off the 18th over bowled. The Royals now needed 28 runs off 12 balls, and it suddenly looked achievable.

Harshit Rana bowled the 19th over and conceded 19 runs as Buttler hit him for two sixes and one four. The English batter also managed to get to the other end by taking a single.

Varun Chakravarthy bowled the final over for KKR, with RR needing 9 runs to win. Buttler hit him for a six off the first ball and got to his second 100 in this IPL season. However, Varun bowled three dot balls after that, as Buttler refused to take a single and give the strike to Avesh Khan. He struggled but managed to take 2 runs next and levelled the score.

With all the fielders inside the circle, Buttler still managed to find a gap and score the winning run. It was a last-ball finish; Jos Buttler did it again! Rajasthan Royals scored 224/8 and won the match by 2 wickets.

Jos Buttler’s unbeaten 107 off 60 balls earned him the Player of the Match award. It was the second time this year that someone from the opposition team scored a hundred, and, in reply, Buttler scored a 100 as well to win it for his team. Last time, it was Virat Kohli for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). This time, it was Sunil Narine.

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Published: 17 Apr 2024, 07:14 AM IST