The Kolkata Knight Riders cruised to an eight-wicket triumph over the Rajasthan Royals in their IPL clash on Friday night, as Yusuf Pathan (49 not out) and Jacques Kallis (33 not out) added an undefeated 78 to seal victory at EdenGardens.
The win was so comfortable for the Kolkata outfit that Kallis even tried to nurse Pathan to a first IPL fifty in over three years. But when he clubbed a Brad Hogg full-toss for four, the game was up with 16 balls to spare.
Sanju Samson had earlier racked up a solid 40 for the Royals against his former employers, facing 36 balls and hitting two sixes. Shane Watson, who struck a run-a-ball 35, was the only other Rajasthan batsman to make any real impression with the bat.
The pair put on 44 for the third wicket, as the Kolkata spinners kept a tight wrap on the run rate. S Senanayake opened the bowling and produced a fine spell of 2-26 in his four overs, while Suresh Narine, the West Indian off-spinner, was at his miserly best, giving away just 20 runs in his spell.
Owais Shah clubbed 24 off 22 balls late in the innings, but it wasn’t enough as the Royals closed on just 132 for six.
Pathan, at his brutal best, smashed three sixes on his way to a 35-ball knock that also included three fours. Kallis, meanwhile, was at his serene best, facing 30 balls and hitting a six and two fours.
Earlier, Manvinder Bisla (29) and Gautum Gambhir (12) had chalked up a breezy 41 for the first wicket, to ease any nerves in the Kolkata dug-out. Gambhir was smartly stumped off Watson, before Bisla was caught in the deep off A Chavan.
The win was Kolkata’s fourth for the season, and kept them just about in the hunt for the playoffs. The Royals, despite the big loss, stay in third place in the standings.
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KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS: MS Bisla (wk), G Gambhir (capt), YK Pathan, JH Kallis, EJG Morgan, DB Das, R Bhatia, S Narwal, SMSM Senanayake, Iqbal Abdulla, SP Narine
RAJASTHAN ROYALS: R Dravid (capt), AM Rahane, SV Samson, SR Watson, STR Binny, OA Shah, DH Yagnik (wk), AA Chavan, JP Faulkner, GB Hogg, SK Trivedi
Proud to be one of the millions that support KKR especially when their enigmatic bowler Sunil Narine is my countryman
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