KKR vs RR: Cummins, Morgan Shines, KKR Defeated RR By 60 Runs. Dream11 IPl 2020: Match no 54, KKR beats RR by 60 runs, keeping their campaign tall.
Highlights(KKR vs RR):
Pat Cummins and Eoin Morgan shine with the ball and bat respectively to sail Kolkata Knight Riders to a safe victory by huge 60 runs. With the loss to KKR, Rajasthan has now been eliminated from the tournament. Rajasthan becomes the third team to get eliminated after Chennai Super Kings and Kings XI Punjab. RR finished last in the points table due to a poor run rate.
Earlier, Steve Smith won the toss and opt to bowl first. Jofra Archer proved his worth again by providing an early breakthrough to the Royals. Jofra dismissed Nitish Rana in the second ball of the match. Shubman Gill and Rahul Tripathi took Kolkata past 70 runs. They both were hitting the ball nicely, but Rahul Tewatia dismissed good looking Shubman Gill(36 off 24). Shreyash Gopal removed another set batsmen Rahul Tripathi(39 off 34). Sunil Narine and Dinesh Karthik went for a duck off Rahul Tewatia.
Eoin Morgan, KKR skipper scored blistering 68 runs in 35 balls includes 5 boundaries and 6 towering sixes. Morgan remained unbeaten this time. Also, some wrist work from Andre Russell. He made quickfire 25 off just 11 deliveries. KKR ended on 191 – 7 in 20 overs.
Rahul Tewatia was the pick of the bowlers for RR, picking 3 crucial wickets. Kartik Tyagi got two wickets while Jofra Archer and Shreyas Gopal got one each.
Rajasthan Royals’ opening looked good at the start, having hit Pat Cummins for 19 runs in the very first over. But the Australian pacer picked Robin Uthappa and Ben Stokes in two consecutive overs. The Rajasthan Skipper Steve Smith failed to score this time. Pat Cummins dismissed Smith cheaply of just 4 runs.
Shivam Mavi got rid of in-form Sanju Samson in the 4th over of the innings. Rajasthan till this time has collapsed. Youngster Riyan Parag also sent to the dugout but Cummins in 5th over. Rahul Tewatia and Shreyash Gopal tried to handle the innings and make a comeback.
Both got a good start but failed to capitalize on it. Varun Chakravarthy provided a needed breakthrough to the KKR. He dismissed dangerous Rahul Tewatia( 31 off 27). However, Shreyas Gopal was trying hard at another end to get closer to the total but none of the batsmen were left to play crucial innings for Rajasthan Royals.
KKR bowlers restricted Rajasthan Royals batting lineup to just 131 – 9 in 20 overs. They won this game by huge 60 runs which will eventually improve KKR’s Net Run Rate.
Pat Cummins proved his worth in an important game for KKR. He was the pick of the bowlers for KKR. He took 4 wickets. Shivam Mavi and Varun Chakravarthy got two wickets each and Kamlesh Nagarkoti got one in his bag.
Post Match Presentation:
Steve Smith | Losing Captain:
We thought 180 was par. But losing four in the first four didn’t help. He (Cummins) bowled nice lengths and made us play big shots. Unfortunately we are at the wrong end of the result. We started well with two wins, we won two before this one but we were inconsistent in the middle we didn’t take enough responsibility. Couple of positives for us, Jofra has played exceptionally well for us. Tewatia pulled a few out of the hat for us, bowled exceptionally well through the tournament as well. You need to win those you should win. The BCCI and everyone involved to get this tournament up and running have done a fantastic. Hope we were able to put few smile on people’s faces, especially in India where it’s been tough.
Andre Russell:
It’s a good feeling to be back on the field. It’s been a tough two weeks doing rehab three times a day, was a bit painful. But, I’m happy that I’m back. It’s a grade two hamstring tear which usually takes 8 weeks to heal. The scan was very ugly. With KKR physio and doctors around me, it helped. I was bowling a few walk upon balls before the game tonight, and it felt good. When it (hamstring) is feeling good, that’s when it’s healing, and I don’t want to disturb the healing process. We have a good bowling (attack), so I can chip in with the yorkers at the backend, but for now I’m going to take one game at a time. As soon as I sweat and my blood’s getting hot, I’m getting out. We were waiting for the cricket gods to work things out for us. I watch each and every game. We play against each other, two games against the same team in a season. So, I watch on the phone what the bowlers do and the batters do.
Eoin Morgan | Winning Captain:
I thought it was around a par score. Every batsman who came back in and said that it was a beautiful wicket with the dew in. We lost wickets between 10th and 15th overs, and to finish like we did was really good. We were out there to be play a free-flowing style of cricket. That was the only way we were going to win. Especially with the dew factor expected anyway, irrespective of when it came. Bringing out Dre Russ in meant that it took the conditions out of the equation. We backed the guys to take a bit of risk even if it wasn’t there. That was one thing we talked about, leading into this game. We felt that a hard length or a good length was the best spot to bowl. We tried to execute that in the first six overs and I thought Mavi was outstanding. Obviously Pat set the tone early on. Winning the game was about taking wickets, especially early. RR are a side that are top-heavy and you need to get them early. Having that aggressive mindset was important for us. Yes, I was aware of the numbers (about net run rate) but you need to first get yourself into a winning position. I don’t think we could have done anything more today. So whatever happens from here is upto the Gods.
Pat Cummins, Man of the Match:
(On going for 19 in the first over) A lot goes through your mind. First few balls weren’t great. As long as you go back to bowling your best balls, it’s alright. Top of off is always that area for me, there was a bit early in there with the new ball. So, I was trying to get as many in there as I can. Not really, don’t think I expected to get all wickets like that. Some days you bowl well and don’t get luck, some days you get a bit of luck as well. Today, everything fell into place. I guess early on in the season, I put a lot of pressure on myself. As the tournament has gone on, I’ve got better and better. You’re always learning.
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