IPL 2024 | Twitter reacts to Andre Russell leading KKR to narrow win at Eden Gardens

Opting to field first in his first game as skipper for Sunrisers Hyderabad, Pat Cummins was thrown a curveball when Sunil Narine was sent in as the opener with Phil Salt. The risk did not pay off as Narine was sent packing in the second over despite Salt smoking Marco Jansen for three consecutive sixes with the scoreboard reading 23/1. KKR’s middle order crumbled like a house of cards as they could only muster 20 runs over the next four overs whilst having the two Iyers back in the dressing room with no major impact. With Nitish Rana walking back for just nine runs, SRH found themselves in the driving seat. However, the incoming Ramandeep Singh smashed four big ones in his 17-ball 35 to bring the hosts roaring back into the contest. The game, though, turned yet again as both Salt and Ramandeep were dismissed in a matter of eleven deliveries with the game nicely placed at 119/6. What followed though was a storm of boundaries as Russell turned back the years with a 25-ball 64. While the highlight was the 26-run over off Bhuvneshwar Kumar, four of the last five overs leaked more than 15 runs as KKR finished with 208 in their 20 overs. 

In response, Hyderabad came out of the box flying, accumulating 40 off the first four overs. Even though Mayank was dismissed in the sixth over, the visitors were well on their way with a 65-run powerplay. Shreyas turned to the ever-reliable Narine who built some pressure with a two-run over which was followed by his compatriot ending Abhishek Sharma’s 19-ball 32. With the midway point, the game was nicely poised with the equation reading 110 needed off the last 10 overs. KKR, however, were in no mood of letting the game slip away as the spinners yielded just 16 runs over the next four overs while accounting for the wickets of Aiden Markram and Rahul Tripathi. Chakaravarthy’s 13-run over seemed to put some life back into the game but the 25-crore man conceded just five in the 16th over to leave Hyderabad on the brink of a defeat. However, keeping in line with the topsy turvy nature of the game, Klassen-Shahbaz combined for a 21-run over to bring the equation to an intersting 39 off the last two overs. With 26 coming off Starc’s last over, SRH found themselves in prime position needing just 13 in the last six. A Klassen six was followed by Shahbaz throwing his wicket away before the South African did the same. With Pat Cummins missing the last ball, where five runs were needed, KKR sealed the classic by four runs.    

Henry Klaasen Appreciating tweet !!

— Drogon (@DhvananM) March 23, 2024