RCB’s wretched season continues as they go down to KKR by 1 run despite Karn Sharma late charge

Synopsis: Mitchell Starc has day to forget as Karn Sharma almost sees RCB through. But Andre Russell’s well-timed dismissal of Will Jacks and Rajat Patidar help KKR win by just a solitary run

Karn Sharma’s almost-heist

On Saturday, Dinesh Karthik had said that due to RCB’s batting woes, specialist spinner Karn Sharma couldn’t play the last couple of matches due to Bengaluru’s need to introduce a batter as an Impact player. On Sunday, with 15 runs remaining off the last over, Sharma almost pulled off a heist for his franchise, hitting three sixes off Mitchell Starc but ultimately falling to the speedster as KKR edged past RCB by just 1 run.

Between the 5th to 11th overs, it was looking like smooth sailing for RCB as Will Jacks and Rajat Patidar smashed the KKR bowlers all around the field, bringing up their respective fifties in quickfire fashion while taking their team to 137/2 in 11 overs. Enter Andre Russell in the 12th, snapping up both the well-set batters in the same over as Bengaluru’s penchant for collapse returned with a vengeance.

Sunil Narine would also strike twice in the 13th over as Cameron Green and Mahipal Lomror were sent back for low scores with RCB tottering at 155/6. Dinesh Karthik would give RCB some hope at the death but he too was snuffed out by Russell, scoring 25 off 18 deliveries.

Jacks, who was bought by RCB for Rs 3.20 crore after an intense bidding war with Rajasthan Royals in the auction, showed what all the hype was about as he took Kolkata’s 24.75 crore signing Starc to the cleaners, marauding 22 runs off his second over which was peppered with two sixes and two fours as the Australian continued to leak runs at crucial junctures. He would reach his half century in 28 balls as the Kolkata bowlers had no answer to the onslaught.

At the other end, Rajat Patidar would find form after starting the IPL on a below par note, smashing Suyash Sharma for 22 runs in the 10th over, bringing up his 50 in just 21 balls as RCB raced towards the target of 223 which would ultimately prove to be 1 run too many.

Harshit Rana has last laugh

The last time Virat Kohli was here at the Eden Gardens, he had equaled Sachin Tendulkar’s record scoring his 49th century in the 2023 World Cup and on Sunday, he started in the same vein smashing Harshit Rana for a four off the very first delivery he faced as familiar chants of “Kohli, Kohli” filled the air. He would send the 54k strong crowd further into frenzy when he pulled Rana for a six in the same over.

Kolkata: Kolkata Knight Riders’ Harshit Rana bowls a delivery during an Indian Premier League (IPL) T20 cricket match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Royal Challengers Bengaluru, at the Eden Gardens, in Kolkata, Sunday, April 21, 2024. (PTI Photo/Swapan Mahapatra)

Rana, however, would have the last laugh as a dipping full toss caught Kohli off guard and led to the bowler catching the follow-through. It was reviewed but Hawk-Eye confirmed the ball’s trajectory to be dipping below the waist and the dismissal stood, leading to a frustrated Kohli having a word with the umpire before trudging off.

Knights’ inconsistent batting

With the mercury touching 41 degrees in Kolkata, most experts predicted the team who won the toss might opt to bat first but RCB captain Faf du Plessis did what his counterpart Shreyas Iyer had done in the last day game at the Eden against Lucknow Super Giants- he opted to bowl first, citing the ground to be more suitable for chasing.

The strategy was brought into question as soon as the match began with Phil Salt smashing Mohammed Siraj for a six and a four in the very first over before following up with double fours in the second as the RCB fielders were run ragged under the unrelenting sun.

Lockie Ferguson would be the next bowler to be hammered as the Englishman continued his destruction, bringing up KKR’s 50 in 3.5 overs. He would, however, miss his 50 by just 2 runs as he was caught out by Rajat Patidar off Siraj for 48 (14).

Meanwhile, Shreyas had to play the anchor role for his franchise yet again as he slowly rebuilt the Knights’ innings as wickets fell all around him with Narine and Angkrish Raghuvanshi both failing to contribute, scoring 10 and 3 respectively. Venkatesh Iyer would follow suit as KKR were 4 down even before the 10th over.

Shreyas’s 50 from 36 balls may not look like the typical T20 innings but it went a long way in steadying the faltering Knights. He would fall soon after trying to clear the long off boundary but ultimately holed out to Faf who took a marvelous diving catch.

Ramandeep Singh, who had scored a blistering 17-ball 35 in the first match against Sunrisers Hyderabad here, showed once again why KKR bought him when he smashed two sixes and a four off the 19th over enabling KKR to cross 200. He was accompanied by Russell, who stayed not out with 27 runs while Singh scored 24 off just 9 deliveries to help the team reach 222.

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