Kings fight but lose to Knights

Kolkata, May 4 

Andre Russell came up with a magical last over to help Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) grab a seven-run victory over Kings XI Punjab here on Wednesday. The victory propelled the hosts to the top of the table with 12 points from 9 games. Russell ended with figures of 4/20 from his four over as Glenn Maxwell’s scintillating 42-ball 68 went in vain.

Chasing KKR’s 165/3, the visitors got off to a disastrous start with Marcus Stoinis (0) heading back on the fourth ball of the very first over. The Australian tried to loft the Andre Russell delivery but was only able to chip it till Piyush Chawla at mid off.

Kings XI were dented further as Manan Vohra (0) and captain Murali Vijay (6) departed in quick succession with the score reading 13/3.

Australian Glenn Maxwell and Wriddhiman Saha then got together to pull off a rescue act. The Saha-Maxwell partnership yielded 40 runs but then the Kings XI wicket-keeper dragged a Chawla googly on to his stumps.

With David Miller by his side, Maxwell carried on piercing the gaps and hitting the big sixes. 

He tonked his countryman Brad Hogg 17 runs in the 12th over. Maxwell ensured the rivals remained worried for a little longer as he kept smacking the ball hard and long.

Finally, he was out leg-before-wicket in the 16th over trying to reverse sweep Chawla. Miller also holed out in the deep soon after. But Axar Patel’s two consecutive sixes in the 18th over ensured his side were within a touching distance of the total.

However, the game turned on its head thereafter as Morne Morkel gave away just 10 runs off the penultimate over. With 12 needed of the last six balls, the Kings crumbled under pressure and ended up with 157/9.

Earlier, Gautam Gambhir and Robin Uthappa’s terrific 101-run stand helped Kolkata get to a fighting total. Uthappa top-scored with 70, while Gambhir contributed 54 runs. None of the Kings XI bowlers were able to take a wicket as all three scalps were run-outs. — IANS

 Today’s match

Delhi vs Pune

Live on Sony Six, 8pm