Move to top of table as KKR stare at early exit
KOLKATA: There was not another Rinku Singh-like miracle. No recreation of the past by Sunil Narine or Andre Russell, who was given the honour of ringing the Eden bell on his birthday. There was no encore done by Kolkata Knight Riders. In the end, Gujarat Titans outplayed and out-witted KKR by seven wickets at the Eden Gardens on Saturday, racing to the top of the table with 12 points from 8 matches and dealing a significant blow to the hosts' playoff ambitions.
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In a match delayed by 45 minutes because of rain, KKR never looked to be in control of their destiny despite Rahmanullah Gurbaz's power-packed 39-ball 81 (4x5 and 6x7) and Russell's late fireworks of 19-ball 34.
Having restricted KKR to 179 for seven after putting them in on winning the toss, the Titans completed the chase with consummate ease with Shubman Gill (49) setting up the platform and Vijay Shankar (51 not out) and David Miller (32 not out) providing the coup d'etat with an unbeaten 87-run stand off 39 balls. That Titans' win came with 13 balls remaining bore further testament to the struggles of KKR, who are now staring at an early exit having managed just three wins in nine matches.
1/10:IPL 2023: Gujarat Titans record easy win over KKR, inch closer to playoffs
2/10:Gujarat climb to the top
<p>Defending champions Gujarat Titans once again came up with a clinical display to prevail over Kolkata Knight Riders by seven wickets and climb to the top of the table in the IPL on Saturday. It was sweet revenge for Titans, who lost their home game due to Rinku Singh's heroics.<br /><br /></p>PTI
3/10:A collective bowling effort
<p>First it was, the Titans pace duo of Mohammad Shami (3/33) and Josh Little (2/25) picked five wickets between them, while left-arm spinner Noor Ahmad (2/21) continued his fine run to restrict KKR to a below-par 179/7 after Hardik Pandya opted to bowl.<br /><br /></p>IANS
4/10:Gurbaz shines but KKR lose momentum
<p>On a batting-friendly strip, Rahmanullah Gurbaz's scintillating 39-ball 81 set the tempo, but KKR managed just 45 runs and lost three wickets in the final five overs to miss the psychological 200-run mark.<br /><br /></p>PTI
5/10:Shankar's carnage
<p>In reply, GT raced to the target in 17.5 overs with Vijay Shankar remaining unbeaten on 51 off 24 balls (2x4, 5x6).<br /><br /></p>PTI
6/10:Gill misses out on fifty
<p>Defending the total, KKR had their moments when they dismissed a flawless Shubman Gill one run shy of fifty and almost had David Miller on 26.<br /><br /></p>IANS
7/10:Suyash drops Miller
<p>But they made a harakiri of sorts as Miller's skier, which would have been a straightforward catch by their wicketkeeper, was attempted by Suyash Sharma from third man and he ended up grassing it.<br /><br /></p>AP
8/10:Shankar-Miller show
<p>GT at that time still needed 51 runs from 29 balls but it turned out to be a game-changing moment as Shankar and Miller (32 not out; 18b, 2x4, 2x6) sealed the issue in an unbroken 87-run unbroken partnership that came off 39 balls.<br /><br /></p>IANS
9/10:Two wins away from playoffs
<p>The win took GT to top spot in the table with 12 points from eight matches as they need to win two more matches to seal the playoff berth for a second time on the trot.<br /><br /><br /></p>IANS
10/10:KKR stare at elimination
<p>KKR on the other hand are staring at early elimination after enduring their sixth defeat from nine matches as they now must win all their remaining five matches.<br /><br /></p>IANSKKR raised expectations when Harshit Rana, who replaced an injured Umesh Yadav, found Hardik Pandya's leg in front of the wicket and Narine ended his five-match wicketless streak dismissing Gill. However, Titans soon regrouped themselves, walloping 18 runs off a Suyash Sharma over and the young KKR bowler's woes were complete in the very next over when he dropped David Miller, then batting on 26.
And right from the beginning, nothing appeared to have worked for the hosts.
KKR's ploy of promoting Shardul Thakur following the departure of opener Narayan Jagdeesan fell flat, but Gurbaz, who came in place of an injured Jason Roy, remained a compelling viewing. Executing shots with a blend of exquisite timing and raw power, he smashed Pandya for two massive over-boundaries down the leg and sent Shami straight over his head as KKR managed 60-plus runs in the powerplay for the second match running.
Yet, the home team failed to build on this start, partly because of the batters' reluctance in rotating the strike and partly thanks to Titans bowlers' disciplined line of attack. That KKR managed just 118 runs in 14 overs, post powerplay - during which Rashid Khan alone conceded 54 runs in 4 overs --told how Titans went about wresting the initiative back in their favour, especially in middle overs.
Mohammad Shami (3/ 33), Josh Little (2/25) Noor Ahmad (2/21) --who extinguished Gurbaz's fireworks in the 16th over --were all effective and effervescent in helping the defending champions stay in the groove.
It was thanks to Russell's little cameo, thrilling the packed stands with some of his old pyrotechnics, KKR managed to put up a fighting score.
However, in the end, it proved too insipid and insignificant to make Titans sweat in their march to the summit.
