It was a dramatic finish to the game between KKR and RCB, as the former registered a narrow one-run win to go second on the points table
In a high-octane Indian Premier League encounter at Kolkata’s Eden Gardens, the Kolkata Knight Riders emerged victorious by the narrowest of margins, defeating the Royal Challengers Bengaluru by just one run. After opting to field first, Bengaluru conceded a strong score of 222-6, with Phil Salt contributing a blistering 48 off just 14 balls and skipper Shreyas Iyer adding a vital 50 to the scoreboard. The chase, then, was equally dramatic as Bengaluru mounted a spirited effort to overhaul the target.
Kolkata: Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s Karn Sharma walks towards the pavilion after being dismissed by Kolkata Knight Riders’ Mitchell Starc during the Indian Premier League (IPL)(PTI)
Requiring 21 runs in the final over bowled by Mitchell Starc, the odds seemed against them. However, Bengaluru’s number 10 batter, Karn Sharma, had other plans. Karn stunned the crowd with three enormous sixes off Starc’s bowling, igniting hopes of an improbable victory.
HT launches Crick-it, a one stop destination to catch Cricket, anytime, anywhere. Explore now!
Also read Explained: Why Virat Kohli was given out despite RCB batter’s angry protest over potential no-ball vs KKR
Unfortunately for Bengaluru, Karn’s valiant effort was cut short when he was caught and bowled by Starc on the penultimate delivery of the over, as the RCB ultimately fell short by just one run in a thrilling finish.
Starc’s struggles in the IPL continued to prove expensive once again. In just three overs, Starc conceded 55 runs, although his dismissal of Karn proved key for KKR’s win. Before that, however, the Knight Riders dugout seemed restless as the RCB spinner bashed the league’s most expensive player for maximums thrice in four deliveries.
Starc pitched it full with pace to start the over, but Karn was ready to swing his bat full throttle, getting the elevation perfectly to slice the ball for a six. While he was beaten off the second delivery, Karn picked the off-side again on the third, going towards deep extra cover this time, as he fetched another six.
Starc seemed to lose the plot as he missed the block hole on the fourth delivery, too, handing the ball on a plate for Karn — a wide delivery outside off was smashed towards the deep backward point again. However, Starc showed nerves of steel as he continued targetting the same length, eventually finding success as he targetted the batter’s body.
A lower full toss towards Karn meant the batter couldn’t open his arm, as he pushed the ball straight towards the bowler for an impressive catch.
The run out
With three to defend off the final ball of the innings, Starc, bowling to new batter Lockie Ferguson, pitched the delivery full and just outside off as he changed the angle to around the wicket for the right-hander.
Ferguson carved the shott o deep extra cover, and even as the throw from Ramandeep Singh wavered off a little, wicketkeeper Phil Salt managed to grab hold of the ball and dislodge the bails just in time, denying the KKR duo of Ferguson and Mohammed Siraj a second run.
With the win, KKR climbed to the second spot in the IPL 2024 table with 10 points in seven matches. The RCB, meanwhile, are all but out of contention for playoff spots, having faced a seventh defeat of the season in eight matches. They continue to stay at the bottom of the table.
