Harshit Rana held his nerve to produce a brilliant last over in KKR’s win against SRH on Saturday
In a thrilling IPL encounter on Saturday, Kolkata Knight Riders emerged victorious against Sunrisers Hyderabad by four runs, courtesy of Andre Russell’s all-round brilliance and Harshit Rana’s last-over heroics. Despite Heinrich Klaasen’s explosive 63 off 29 balls, which kept Hyderabad in contention while chasing Kolkata’s formidable target of 209 at Eden Gardens, it was the nerve-wracking final over that defined the match’s climax.
KKR players surround Harshit Rana (C) after the side’s win over SRH(Sudipta Banerjee)
With 13 runs required off the last over, Klaasen’s aggressive strokeplay had swung the momentum in Hyderabad’s favour. However, Rana showcased remarkable composure under pressure. Despite conceding a six off the first ball, he swiftly dismissed Shahbaz Ahmed and Klaasen in a span of three deliveries.
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Rana didn’t let the pressure of defending seven off the remaining five deliveries get to his nerves. Facing the daunting task, the uncapped Indian pacer showcased remarkable bravery as he bowled a slower delivery to the hard-hitting Klaasen instead of relying on a yorker, which is conventionally seen as the safest option.
In the previous over, Mitchell Starc attempted – and failed – at bowling the yorkers as he couldn’t find the right length, instead bowling a full toss as he conceded 26 runs off his 19th over. Perhaps learning from his senior counterpart, Rana backed himself to bowl the slower delivery that eventually reaped the rewards, as Klaasen failed to connect his shot properly, finding a leading edge that Suyash Sharma caught at backward point.
India’s legendary former batter Sachin Tendulkar was mightily impressed with Rana’s composure, taking to X, formerly Twitter, to laud the pacer. The Indian legend also praised Andre Russell, who unleashed fury on SRH pacers in the first innings, as well as Klaasen and KKR’s Phil Salt (54 offf 40 balls).
“We witnessed 2 wonderful knocks by @Russell12A and Klaasen today. @PhilSalt1 led the charge first, followed by some brilliant power-hitting by Russell. Heinrich Klaasen ensured that Sunrisers Hyderabad came close to the target but some courageous bowling in the final over by Harshit Rana sealed the game where he opted for a slower delivery to a well-set Klaasen at that stage of the game instead of a yorker and possibly took him by surprise. Well done,” Tendulkar wrote.
As the tension peaked with Pat Cummins facing the final ball and needing four runs to level the scores, Rana delivered a crucial dot ball, sealing Kolkata’s thrilling victory.
Up next, RCB
The Knight Riders will return to action on March 29 when the side faces Royal Challengers Bengaluru away. The RCB endured a poor start to the season, facing an opening-day defeat to defending champions Chennai Super Kings on Friday.
