KOLKATA, April 13: A brilliant all-round show helped Kolkata Knight Riders thrash Rajasthan Royals by 5 wickets in a low scoring IPL clash at the Eden gardens on Friday.
After Shakib-Al-Hasan’s brilliant bowling restricted Rajasthan to 131/5, hosts batted sensibly to keep the visitor at bay, clinching an easy win in the 15th clash of the tournament, marred by low turnaround on spectators.
Opting to bat on a slow Eden strip, Royals made a cautious start before the skipper Rahul Dravid broke the shackles along with Ajinkya Rahane. But the KKR slow bowlers with wrecker-in-chief Shakib (3/17) broke the 45-run opening partnership as the Royals found it difficult to break free.
Ashok Menaria (1) and Rahul Dravid (28) were also dismissed in quick succession as Royals were reduced to 49 for three in the ninth over. Owais Shah was the top-scorer for Royals with 31 from 33 balls (3x4) as the former England batsman along with Shreevats Goswami put on 59 for the fourth wicket to repair the top-order damage.
There were only two sixes in the visitors innings, something that summed up the nature of the track. In what is seen as his last appearance at the majestic Eden Gardens, Dravid showed flashes of brilliance from his golden days.
Dravid was at his best against Kallis as the Knight Riders as the Knight Riders raced to 45 for no loss after six overs. Shakib claimed two of the three with his first spell reading 3-0-9-2 as the Royals batsmen found themselves foxed by the Bangladeshi left-arm spinner’s flight.
Meanwhile, Dmitri Mascarenhas grabbed five wickets for 25 runs and Shaun Marsh hit unbeaten 64 as Kings XI Punjab defeated Pune Warriors by seven wickets in the Indian Premier League on Thursday.
Mascarenhas took the important wickets of Saurav Ganguly, Marlon Samuels and Robin Uthappa as Pune were bowled out for 115 in 19 overs on a pitch helping seam bowlers.
Australian Shaun Marsh’s unbeaten 64 guided Punjab to reach the target in 17.4 overs for loss of three wickets. This was Punjab’s first win in three games while Pune now have two wins from three.
Summarised scores: Kolkata Knight Riders beat Rajasthan Royals by five wickets.
RAJASTHAN ROYALS 131-5 in 20 overs (Owais Shah 31, Rahul Dravid 28; Shakib Al Hasan 3-17); KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS 137-5 in 19.2 overs (Jacques Kallis 31, Manvinder Bisla 29; Ashok Menaria 1-3, Brad Hogg 1-20).
Kings XI Punjab defeated Pune Warriors by seven wickets.
PUNE WARRIORS 115 all out in 19 overs (Mithun Manhas 31; Dmitri Mascarenhas 5-25, Harmeet Singh 2-23); KINGS XI PUNJAB 116-3 in 17.4 overs (Shaun Marsh 64 not out).—Agencies