Agencies
Mohali
A magnificent all-round bowling performance followed by a clinical opening stand from Robin Uthappa and Gautam Gambhir propelled the Kolkata Knight Riders to an emphatic six-wicket win in the Indian Premier League clash against the Kings XI Punjab at the Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali, Chandigarh on Tuesday.
Kolkata won the toss and elected to bowl. The Kings XI Punjab managed a disappointing 138 for eight. The Knight Riders reached 141 for four in pursuit with 17 balls to spare to move to the summit of the IPL log.
The Kolkata slow bowlers dominated for most of the innings, apart from a brief period in the first six overs in which Murali Vijay produced flashes of brilliance. Shaun Marsh was a steady influence throughout with his 56 off 41 balls.
Marsh and Kyle Abbott hammered 18 runs in the final over to steer the Kings X1 Punjab to 138 for eight.
The four spinners of the Knight Riders were superb. Sunil Narine was the pick with his 2-22, and Piyush Chawla was another standout-performer with his 1-18. Shakib al Hasan also threatened.
The South African fast bowler Morne Morkel took 2-27 and operated well in partnership with Umesh Yadav.
Uthappa and Gambhir struck nine fours in the power play and compiled 65 runs in pursuit of the target of 139.
It was almost atypical T20-scoring in the first six overs. They hardly broke a sweat and played traditional cricket shots to fashion the highest power-play score in this season’s IPL.
Uthappa was the more aggressive of the duo, completing his half-century off 24 balls to power Kolkata.
Pardeep Sahu finally broke the opening stand of 82 when he trapped Uthappa in front for 53.
Glenn Maxwell rewarded Sahu for his crafty efforts with an acrobatic catch at deep cover to remove Gambhir for 34 as the visitors slipped to 98 for two after 11 overs.
The legspinner Sahu finished with 2-18, while the left-arm spinner Axar Patel took 2-19.
Patel caused some discomfort as he bowled Manish Pandey for 12 and had Shakib al Hasan caught for 11.
The support bowlers were disappointing, especially Abbott. He leaked 32 runs in three overs.
Earlier, the Kolkata Knight Riders introduced three spinners in the first ten overs. The trio, Shakib, Chawla and Narine, left their mark on the run-rate while also taking early scalps.
Chawla bamboozled Vijay with a googly for 26.
Narine accounted for Wriddhiman Saha for 8 and Maxwell for 4.
Yusuf Pathan had the out-of-form South African player David Miller caught behind off an under edge for 6.
Ultimately, no batsman was able to break the shackles and dominate against the slow men.
Punjab’s lower order also battled against the returning fast bowlers Morkel and Yadav, who operated with expert control during the final five overs.
