IPL 10 RCB vs KKR: Narine-Lynn power Kolkata to 6-wicket victory

Bengaluru: The blitzkrieg by Sunil Narine and Chris Lynn during powerplay overs helped Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) register an easy 6-wciekt win with 29 balls remaining over Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in Indian Premier League match at the M Chinnaswamy ground here on Sunday.

Narine smashed the joint-fastest IPL fifty reaching the feat off just 15 balls. He got out after scoring 54 runs off only 17 deliveries, and laced his inning with 6 powerful fours and 4 astounding sixes. Chris Lynn also completed his half-century off only 21 deliveries and got out on the very next ball. His inning was studded with 5 fours and 4 sixes.

The duo added 105 runs in the first six overs which is the highest ever score powerplay score in a decade-long history of IPL.

After being badly thrashed by the KKR openers, RCB bowlers made a recovery and took four wickets in next 54 runs. Colin de Grandhomme (31 off 28) and skipper Gautam Gambhir (14 of 16) were the other batsmen to go back to the pavilion.

Also Read: IPL 10 RCB vs KKR: Travis Head-Mandeep Singh guide Bangalore to 158/6

Ankit Choudhary and Yuzvendra Chahal bagged one wicket each while Pawan Negi emerged as the pick of the bowlers for RCB getting two scalps in his three overs for 19 runs.

Earlier, after being invited to bat first, Travis Head played a belligerent 75-run unbeaten inning to elevate RCB to a challenging total of 158/6. He scored 75 runs of only 47 balls hitting 3 fours and 5 sixes to elevate a struggling RCB to a challenging score of 158/6. He was well accompanied by opener Mandeep Singh, as he also scored a fine fifty in the match. He scored 52 runs off 43 balls with the help of 4 fours and a six.

The duo partnered the crease in a crucial 71-run partnership that came off 63 balls, but played an important role in helping RCB post a decent score on the board.

The only other RCB batsman who could touch the double figures was AB de Villiers as he scored 10 runs off 8 balls with 2 boundaries. Skipper Virat Kohli (5 off 9) failed once again as he misjudged a slower delivery bowled by Umesh Yadav and got LBW. Opener Chris Gayle continued his horrible form and went back on the very first ball of the match.

Kedar Jadhav, who showed signs of good form during the initial phase of the tenth edition of Indian Premier League, could only score 8 runs off 9 balls with 1 four. Pawan Negi added 5 runs off 3 balls with one boundary.

Umesh Yadav was the pick of the bowlers for KKR as he claimed three wickets (Gayle, Kohli and Negi) for 36 runs in his four overs, while Sunile Narine bagged two wickets for 29 runs in his four. Chris Woakes managed one scalp for 39 runs in his four overs. Ankit Rajpoot, Piyush Chawla and Colin de Grandhomme remained wicket-less in their spells.

The rain tried to play the spoiler in the match but the authorities did not reduce the length of the match. With this victory, KKR has reached on the second position in the IPL 2017 points table with 16 points out of 12 matches, while RCB is right at the bottom with just 5 points in 13 matches.