KXIP Beat KKR By 8 Wkts, Enter Top 4: Five Game-Changing Moments

Mandeep Singh scored an unbeaten 66 to steer the KXIP towards victory against KKR and closer to a top 4 spot.

KXIP defeat KKR by 8 wickets in the 46th game of the IPL.

(Photo: BCCI/IPL)

KXIP have bolstered their chances of cementing a place in the top 4 for the IPL with an 8 wicket win against KKR at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium.

Having lost the toss and being put in to bat, KKR managed to score 149 for the loss of 9 wickets.

KXIP, thanks to a 100 run partnership between the man of the match Chris Gayle and Mandeep Singh, managed to chase down the target comfortably in the 19th over. This is the fifth consecutive win for KXIP, who now sit at the fourth position on the IPL points table.

1. Sluggish Start By Kolkata

Maxwell opened the bowling for KXIP and the experiment paid off as he got rid of Nitish Rana in the first over itself.

Thereafter, Mohammed Shami bowled an excellent first spell in the powerplay as he took 2 wickets to unsettle the KKR batting order.

As Shubman Gill held one end, he kept losing partners as KKR lost 3 quick wickets to land themselves at 10 for 3 after two overs.

Both Rana and Dinesh Karthik couldn’t even open their accounts. What was befuddling was when former KKR Captain Dinesh Karthik took the review, despite it being very clear that he had edged to the keeper. A waste of a precious review.

KKR have not had a 50+ run opening partnership in this edition of the IPL and that problem seems to be adding a lot of pressure on the middle-order batsman. 

2. Gill, Morgan Restore Parity

Shubman Gill & Morgan came good with some power hitting to restore parity at the end of the powerplay, getting the total after 6 overs to 54 for 3.

The Morgan versus Murgan duel kicked things off for KKR as the Englishman took the bowler to the cleaners with a couple of boundaries.

Gill continued the onslaught with some power hitting of his own as the duo put up a partnership of 81 runs for the 5th wicket, with each scoring 40 runs.

KKR fans’ hearts were broken after leg-break bowler Bishnoi removed Morgan just when the duo was looking to take the KKR score to over 170, as they were scoring at more that 8-runs an over.

3. Solid Start For KXIP

Chasing 150 to win, Punjab got off to a solid start with skipper KL Rahul and Mandeep Singh putting up 47 runs in the opening 8 overs.

Determined not to lose wickets in the powerplay, the duo saw off the pace attack of Pat Cummins to stay at par with the required run rate.

Rahul was the aggressor in the partnership as he got 28 of those 47 runs with Mandeep contributing a circumspect 19 runs off 23 balls.

The partnership was broken by Varun Chakravarthy, who caught KL Rahul on the back foot in front of the wickets for an easy leg before decision.

4. Another Gayle Storm

Christopher Henry Gayle was at his best as he clobbered the Kolkata bowling attack for a well-made 51 off 29 balls. He was awarded the man of the match trophy for his knock.

Having started his innings with caution, the big West Indian went on to attack Chakravarthy as he hit him for two consecutive sixes in the 10th over.

After realising that the required run rate was under control, "the universe boss” didn’t shy from stealing the odd singles to keep the scoreboard ticking.

Towards the end, he went after the bowlers to help better the net run rate which could be a big factor in the fight for the top four spots.

5. All the Way To the Finish Line

Mandeep Singh and Gayle both got half-centuries and steered KXIP to a comfortable 8-wicket win against KKR.

The duo put up a 100-run partnership for the 3rd wicket with Gayle getting 51 runs and Mandeep Singh contributing 46 runs.

Singh saw KXIP over the finish line with a 66-run unbeaten knock off 56 deliveries. This is a good comeback for the Punjab opener, who had been struggling in the tournament.