NEW DELHI: Andre Russell's dynamic all-round performance propelled the Kolkata Knight Riders to a thrilling victory by four runs over the Sunrisers Hyderabad in an IPL nail-biter on Saturday.
Russell's explosive batting led KKR to a formidable total of 208/7, with his unbeaten 64 runs off just 25 balls, supported by a crucial 81-run partnership with Rinku Singh.
The innings began with a fiery start from England's Phil Salt, who contributed 54 runs.
1/10:Russell, Harshit help KKR edge SRH in IPL thriller
AFP
2/10:Andre Russell's heroics
The big-hitting Russell steered Kolkata to 208/7 with his unbeaten 25-ball 64 and a 81-run stand with Rinku Singh after England's Phil Salt began the batting charge with his 54.PTI
3/10:Harshit Rana's last over
Needing 13 off the last over after a flurry of sixes from SRH's Klaasen in overs 18 and 19, fast bowler Harshit was hit for a six on ball one but kept calm to send back Shahbaz Ahmed and Klaasen in the space of three balls.PTI
4/10:Heinrich Klaasen's blitz
Heinrich Klaasen smashed 63 off 29 balls to give KKR a scare as SRH attempted to chase down a victory target of 209 at Eden Gardens.PTI
5/10:Pat Cummins' debut as captain
Pat Cummins, on his IPL debut as captain, faced the final ball and needed four to tie the match but Harshit bowled a dot ball to trigger wild celebrations.AP
6/10:Mitchell Starc's expensive spell
Mitchell Starc broke the record in the auction when KKR shelled out $2.98 million for the left-arm quick. But Starc endured a day to forget, getting hit for 53 runs off his four overs.AFP
7/10:Sunrisers Hyderabad's strong start
SRH started strongly as Mayank Agarwal (32) and Abhishek Sharma (32) put on 60 for the opening wicket before Harshit broke through to send back Agarwal.PTI
8/10:Russell's bowling impact
Starc created an early chance but wicketkeeper Salt spilled a catch to extend Sharma's stay, which was finally cut short by Russell's pace bowling.PTI
9/10:KKR's spin dominance
KKR unleashed their spin force and a wicket each to Varun Chakravarthy and Sunil Narine further dented SRH's chase.AP
10/10:Klaasen-Ahmed partnership
Klaasen decided to unleash his power in a 58-run stand off 16 ball with Ahmed to scare KKR.AFPIn pursuit of KKR's challenging total, Sunrisers' Heinrich Klaasen counterattacked with a blistering 63 off 29 balls, keeping SRH in contention as they chased the target of 209 at Eden Gardens.
As the match came down to the wire, requiring 13 runs off the final over, tensions were high.
Despite a six off the first ball by Klaasen, fast bowler Harshit Rana maintained his composure, dismissing Shahbaz Ahmed and Klaasen in quick succession to seal the thrilling victory for KKR.
Russell's dominance was evident as he decimated the SRH bowling attack, smashing seven sixes and three fours.
1/8:MS Dhoni's sensational records as CSK captain
Agencies
2/8:Dhoni's IPL Captaincy Records
<p>Dhoni holds the record for most matches as an IPL captain, with an astonishing 226 matches to his name.</p>Agencies
3/8:Global Captaincy Record
<p>Dhoni is the world record holder in the Twenty20 format, having captained 322 matches with 189 wins.</p>Agencies
4/8:Most IPL Wins
<p>Dhoni owns the record for the most IPL wins as a captain, with an impressive tally of 133 victories.</p>Agencies
5/8:Record with CSK
<p>Dhoni has led CSK in 212 IPL matches, with 128 wins, 82 losses, and 2 no results, setting a record for a single franchise in the Twenty20 format.</p>Agencies
6/8:Overall T20 Record
<p>Overall, Dhoni has led CSK in 235 out of the team's 249 T20 games, demonstrating his consistent leadership role.</p>Agencies
7/8:IPL Titles
<p>Dhoni shares the record for the most IPL titles as a captain with Rohit Sharma, both winning 5 titles. Dhoni's IPL titles came in 2010, 2011, 2018, 2021, and 2023.</p>Agencies
8/8:Champions League T20 Success
<p>Dhoni has also led CSK to two Champions League T20 (CLT20) titles in 2010 and 2014, showcasing his success beyond the IPL.</p>Agencies"Let's not go ahead of ourselves. He batted well, and it's got nothing to do with anyone coming into there (KKR). If he doesn't do well in the next few innings, will you blame Gautam Gambhir? Let's take it a little bit easy," Gavaskar told Star Sports.
"When you saw someone like Bhuveneshwar Kumar, who was practising his yorkers so well on the practise pitches, bowled leg-deliveries (in the match) which was everything in the arc for Andre Russell... When somebody like Russell is hitting the ball into the stands, nobody can stop him," Gavaskar said further.
KKR will now take on Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on March 29.
