The Kolkata Knight Riders defeated the Punjab Kings by five wickets on Monday, maintaining their chances of making the IPL play-offs. Rinku Singh once again delivered an impressive last over for the team. Rinku was able to win the match with a 10-ball-21 not out thanks to KKR captain Nitish Rana's half-century and Andre Russell's significant boost in the last overs of their 180-run chase.
Earlier, when the visitors decided to bat on a sluggish pitch, Varun Chakaravarthy once again successfully led his bowling department to collect 3/26 as KKR put on a clean bowling performance to limit PBKS to a below-par 179 for seven. Rana, who moved up to No. 3, led KKR's batting display in response with an outstanding performance that included a 38-ball 51 (6×4, 1×6).
After Rana became Rahul Chahar's second victim, Russell exploded against Sam Curran in a 20-run over, hitting him for three sixes in four deliveries to turn the game in favour of KKR, who needed six off the last over and required 56 off 28 balls.
However, death over expert Arshdeep Singh, who had six to defend, brought it home by scoring four times off of his first four pitches. After Russell was out in the last ball, there was further suspense as Rinku Singh (21 not out; 10b) once again came to KKR's aid, securing the victory with a boundary off the final ball.
KKR vs. PBKS IPL 2023 Points Table
The race for at least four of the qualifying positions has become even more tense as a result of KKR's victory. With RR leading that lineup based on their net run rate, they are the fifth team with 10 points. With a net run rate of -0.079, KKR are currently in sixth place. However, depending on the outcome of Wednesday's match between Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bangalore, who both have a game in hand and are tied for 10 points, they can drop even worse. Second-placed Chennai Super Kings are in 13th position, one point behind Lucknow Super Giants in third, who have 11 points. With 16 points, Gujarat Titans are in first place.
Orange Cap desk
The top five positions in the Orange Cap rankings remained unchanged. Rinku Singh, however, has moved up to position 10 with 337 runs in 11 games and a strike rate of 151.12. Yashasvi Jaiswal is in second place with 477 runs at a strike rate of 160.60, while Faf du Plessis is still in first place with 511 points at a strike rate of 157.71.
a Purple Cap desk
Varun Chakaravarthy moved up to fifth place on the Purple Cap standings with a score of 3/26. In 11 games, he has taken 17 wickets. With 19 wickets, Tushar Deshpande of CSK, Rashid Khan of Gujarat Titans, and Mohammed Shami of Gujarat Titans are in first place. On the basis of their economies, Rashid comes in first, then Deshpande, and then Shami. On 17 wickets, Piyush Chawla is fourth.
