KKR keep their IPL campaign alive with low-scoring win

Kolkata Knight Riders 148 for 6 (Pandey 45. Bosch 3-30) beat Mumbai Indians 147 for 8 (Bosch 32*, Green 2-23, Dubey 2-34, Tyagi 2-37) by four wickets

Kolkata Knight Riders kept alive their hopes of an unlikely playoff spot with their sixth win in their last seven games after having stayed winless in the first six. Their tall seamers Cameron Green. Saurabh Dubey took out two Mumbai Indians batters each in the powerplay before their spin twins turned the screw in on a pitch with both seam movement and turn.

Chasing 148, KKR lost three wickets early, but a couple of 40s from Manish Pandey. Rovman Powell were enough to break the back of the chase. KKR still needed to win their last match against Delhi Capitals. hope two other results go their way, but the win kept their dream alive for at least one more night.

KKR have been the second-stingiest side of the tournament, but they haven't been especially quick with their wicket-taking. Not even once had they taken more than two wickets in the powerplay coming into this match. Then they won the toss on a pitch that had stayed under covers because of rains. chose to unleash their tall quicks, but not before the almost customary first over from left-arm spinner Anukul Roy.

Immediately both drew some seam movement and some extra bounce. Stifled after first two overs went for just 10, both Ryan Rickelton and Rohit Sharma tried big hits. Rohit launched one into the stands,. Rickelton skied one for Pandey to take his second excellent catch of the season at backward point, this time controlling the swirling ball. Green then went past the outside edge of Naman Dhir two balls in a row before kissing the edge with an outswinger to send him back for a three-ball duck.

Green was in action in the next over, running back. to his right for 33 metres to take over his shoulder a skier from Rohit. The ball was full enough, but there was some seam and some extra bounce to take the big edge. Suryakumar Yadav made perhaps his best start of this IPL, but then Dubey went round the wicket to cramp him up with some seam movement back in. had him playing on for 15 off six balls.

On either side of a one-hour rain break, Tilak Varma. Hardik Pandya combined for the worst strike rate for Nos 5 and 6 in an IPL innings when both played at least 20 balls. It wasn't for want of trying. Sunil Narine and a hobbling Varun Chakravarthy were just too good on a surface with turn available for them. Varun nearly got Tilak caught and bowled but was put off by the wicketkeeper Angkrish Raghuvanshi charging towards him. The catch went down, and Raghuvanshi ended up with a concussion.

However. it didn't hurt KKR too much as Kartik Tyagi had Tilak caught on the pull despite only a 59-metre boundary to clear. Narine was not to be denied for long as he zipped through Hardik to get him out for the first time in T20 cricket. bowled middle stump.

Will Jacks ran himself out trying to steal a second having hit straight to Rinku Singh at deep cover,. Corbin Bosch's 32 off 18 took MI to 147.

Finn Allen made a threatening start, crashing Deepak Chahar through square cover for two fours,. then he ended the over playing Chahar on. Then we had a rare partnership. Jasprit Bumrah. only three wickets to his name this IPL, had never taken the wicket of either Ajinkya Rahane or Pandey despite bowling more than 40 balls to each. Forget the wicket, the duo caressed him for three fours in his first over.

The inconsistent Bosch, though, somehow kept MI in the hunt with the wickets of Rahane and Green. The delivery to Rahane was a beautiful length ball that seamed away. bounced extra, but it came after an ordinary start of nine off the first three balls. Then he had Green hitting a ball drifting down leg straight down the throat of long leg.

At 54 for 3 in 7.1 overs, missing Raghuvanshi, KKR were in a bit of jeopardy, but the asking rate wasn't alarming. there was appreciable amount of dew hampering the bowlers. On top of that, Bosch bowled the first ball to Powell down leg, which he deposited deep into the stands. Pandey's touch play. Powell's power constantly kept running away from MI only to be helped along the way by fielding errors.

Hardik drew a top edge from Powell,. this was Chahar's turn to be put off at fine leg by deep square leg running towards him should there be a rebound to be taken. In the end, neither went for the catch. In the next over, Bosch wrong-footed himself at slip as Powell went for a hard cut off Raghu Sharma.

Bumrah had his own back with a beauty to burst through the gap between Pandey's bat. pad, getting 1.8-degree seam movement with a 15-over-old ball, but KKR now needed only 30 off 30. And even though Bosch took a stunner at backward point to send Powell back, Rinku. Roy saw the nervy chase through with seven balls to spare.