By Kolkata Knight Riders, led by Sunil Narine’s outstanding performance, dominated Lucknow Super Giants to secure a resounding 98-run victory on Sunday, propelling them to the top spot on the points table. KKR’s total of 235 for 6 was the first time any team had scored over 200 at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow. LSG fell short in the run chase, getting bundled out for 137.
The Key: Middle Overs
KKR not only maintained their early momentum through the middle overs with the bat, largely thanks to Sunil Narine’s explosive batting, but also completely disrupted LSG’s chase with the ball. They took seven wickets in this phase, conceding only 60 runs, halting LSG’s charge and securing a comprehensive victory.
- KKR: 101/2, LSG: 60/7
- KKR Run-Rate: 11.22, LSG Run-Rate: 6.67
- KKR 4s/6s: 4/8, LSG 4s/6s: 3/4
Kolkata Knight Riders
Powerplay: Narine, Salt Lead the Charge
In the powerplay, Phil Salt and Narine provided KKR with another explosive start. While Salt started with a streaky boundary, Narine attacked Naveen ul Haq in the third over. The duo relied more on boundaries than sixes, powering KKR to 70/1 in the powerplay, the highest by any side against LSG this season.
Middle Overs: Narine’s Explosive Batting
Once the field restrictions were lifted, Narine’s went on a rampage, especially against Marcus Stoinis, smashing three sixes in four balls in the 11th over. He had a bit of luck with a couple of dropped catches, but eventually fell to Ravi Bishnoi. Andre Russell’s cameo also boosted KKR’s total.
Death Overs: Ramandeep’s Late Blitz
In the death overs, KKR didn’t find the acceleration they needed initially. However, Rinku Singh and Shreyas Iyer’s partnership and Ramandeep Singh’s explosive six-ball stay, where he hammered three sixes and a four, propelled KKR to their highest T20 total at the venue.
Lucknow Super Giants
Powerplay: Stoinis Starts Strong
In pursuit of a big target, LSG attacked early, with KL Rahul hitting a boundary off the first ball. Despite losing Arshin Kulkarni early, Stoinis’ aggressive batting kept LSG in the game, scoring 55/1 in the powerplay, their most productive this season.
Middle Overs: LSG Collapse
The middle overs saw LSG crumble, starting with Rahul’s dismissal in the eighth over. The collapse continued, with Deepak Hooda, Stoinis, Andre Russell, and Nicholas Pooran departing quickly. Narine and Varun Chakravarthy further added to their misery, and LSG could never recover.
Death Overs: Cleaned Up Quickly
With the result inevitable, KKR bowlers quickly snapped up the last two wickets, and despite a DRS review, LSG folded up with 3.5 overs remaining.
Brief Scores: Kolkata Knight Riders 235/6 in 20 overs (Sunil Narine 81, Phil Salt 32; Naveen-ul-Haq 3-49) beat Lucknow Super Giants 137 in 16.1 overs (Marcus Stoinis 36, KL Rahul 25; Harshit Rana 3-24, Varun Chakravarthy 3-30) by 98 runs
Next Matches:
KKR will face Mumbai Indians at Eden Gardens on Saturday, while LSG will travel to Hyderabad to face Sunrisers Hyderabad on Wednesday.
