TATA IPL 2024: KKR Defeats MI by 18 Runs, First to Enter Playoffs with Stellar Bowling
Ishan Kishan's quickfire 40 off 22 balls wasn't enough for Mumbai Indians as Kolkata Knight Riders clinched victory by 18 runs in a rain-shortened 16-over match at Eden Gardens. The triumph was fueled by an exceptional bowling performance, particularly by spinners Varun Chakravarthy and Sunil Narine for Kolkata Knight Riders.
Despite Mumbai Indians cruising at 65 without loss, thanks to Ishan Kishan and Rohit Sharma's partnership, the KKR bowlers staged a comeback. They maintained disciplined lines and utilized variations in pace effectively on a wicket offering grip and bounce.
Chakravarthy (2-17), Harshit Rana (2-34) and Andre Russell (2-34) bowled brilliantly to check the Mumbai Indians progress and restricted them to 139/8 after a 21-ball 42 by Venkatesh Iyer and 23-ball 33 by Nitish Rana helped them recover from a precarious 40/3 after they were asked to bat first by Mumbai Indians. Andre Russell (14-ball 24) and Rinku Singh (20 off 12) struck some lusty blows towards the end as KKR reached a challenging 157/7.
KKR were again looking in trouble at the end of the Power-play with Ishan Kishan going strong before Sunil and Varun Chakravarthy applied the brakes. This was Mumbai Indians' ninth defeat in 13 matches this season and they will wrap up their campaign on May 17 at the Wankhede with a clash against Lucknow Super Giants.
Chasing a tough target of 158 in 16 overs, Mumbai made a fine start with Ishan Kishan slamming a 22-ball 40, studded with five boundaries and two sixes. Though Rohit Sharma, brought in as an Impact Substitute, struggled to get going, Kishan's superb batting ensured that the five-time champions reached 59 for no loss in the five-over Power-play.
Kishan, who struck successive fours off and followed that up with a six off the final ball of the fourth over bowled by Harshit Rana, switch-hit Sunil Narine for a boundary and a six off successive balls to round off the Power-play. Narine got the breakthrough for KKR when he outfoxed Kishan with a faster carrom ball and the batter hit it straight to Ramandeep Singh.
Rohit Sharma struggled to 19 off 24 balls before he offered an easy catch to Narine off Chakravarthy. Suryakumar Yadav, who struck a brilliant unbeaten century at the Wankhede a few days back, was out cheaply, managing 11 off 15 balls before he tried to hit Andre Russell from way outside the off-stump to the leg side and was caught by Ramandeep near the boundary.
Tilak Varma smashed Harshit Rana for a four and six in consecutive deliveries, followed by another boundary with a reverse hit. However, Mumbai's momentum was halted when Nehal Wadhera was run out while attempting a second run off the last ball, leaving them requiring 41 runs from 12 balls. Naman Dhir then showcased his power hitting by striking two sixes and a four off just four deliveries against Russell. Moreover, when Phil Salt dropped a catch off the last ball of the over, Mumbai Indians capitalized, scoring 18 runs in the 14th over.
Requiring 22 runs from the final six balls, Naman Dhir attempted to clear the boundary off Rana's delivery but mistimed the shot, resulting in an easy catch for Rinku Singh at deep midwicket. Dhir departed after scoring 17 off six deliveries. Shortly after, Rana's delivery surprised Tilak Varma with extra bounce, causing his attempted shot over point to end up in the hands of keeper Salt.
