In cricket, sometimes the side that looks to have messed it up entirely ends up getting over the line. Not due to a miracle, a fluke, but because they manage to stay unbelievably calm in the face of the chaos around them. Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) did just that in Delhi tonight. They lost tempo, witnessed their best bowlers getting smashed, and despite all that, still soared away with the points, all thanks to their spin duo, who refused to succumb to defeat.
Kolkata began as if they were looking to outdo a storm. Sunil Narine, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, and Ajinkya Rahane gave them their fastest start of the season. The first two overs went for 33, and by the end of the powerplay, they had amassed 79 runs for one wicket. Some of their unbridled batting owes to DC’s shoddy efforts to bowl well. Delhi’s pacers were throwing deliveries in the slot and were, in return, getting treated just as such a ball should have been.
But the quick starts were all the top order could give to their side. The top order, along with Venkatesh Iyer at No. 4, departed before the innings hit the halfway mark. This left the game and KKR’s title defense in the hands of Rinku Singh and Angkrish Raghuvanshi. The pair decided to take the scenic road for a while and added a steady 61 runs off just 46 balls.
Just when they started to lower their guard a little and start cashing in at the death overs, death came running for them. Both departed in subsequent overs. Only 45 runs came in the last five, while losing five wickets. KKR’s 250 dream was quietly turned into 205, which looked good, but nothing more than that.
If KKR thought their target looked light, especially with dew around and DC’s batters licking their lips, they were proved wrong soon. Abishek Porel treated the first ball of the innings to a four and departed back to the hut on the second. Karun Nair came to support Faf du Plessis, who looked in good touch, but went back contributing only 15 runs to the tally.
It was starting to look threatening, and DC seemed to be panicking. And the epitome of their emotions came in a wild run-out that saw KL Rahul packing. There was confusion, there always is. And Rahul was the man out of the crease.
In came Axar Patel with a bandaged hand and absolutely tore into Narine on the second ball. He and du Plessis hit Varun Chakravarthy and Sunil Narine out of the attack after thrashing them for 22 and 19 runs in two overs each. Axar sent Narine for a six once, and then again in the next over. He would do it once more before Narine avenged himself with a quick delivery.
At one point, Delhi required just 69 off 41 balls, with two set batsmen on the crease and their power-hitters down the order still waiting. But within the blink of an eye, they lost three wickets, including du Plessis and Axar Patel, all thanks to Narine’s brilliance executed through his bowling.
Varun, who was thumped for fun earlier by DC batters, returned for his final over. He took a wicket, then another. The last four overs brought five wickets and just 12 runs.
Vipraj Nigam showed the last act of resistance. With both Narine’s and Chakravarthy’s quota of overs completed, the young spinner took his chance and added 38 runs off just 19 balls to the total. His innings had rebellion written all over it, but it didn’t last long enough to do any real damage, with him departing in the penultimate ball of the innings.
By the time the final over was bowled, DC were already out of the chase. KKR, who were gasping for air in the middle overs, are suddenly back in the hunt for the playoffs.
