IPL 9 Match 26 Review: Delhi Daredevils flatten incompetent KKR

The Delhi Daredevils (DD) completely outclassed the mighty Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) after they comprehensively beat them by 27 runs at the Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium, Delhi. What made the win more special was that this was their first win over KKR after losing 4 games on the trot.

Gautam Gambhir, the KKR skipper, chose to bowl on a sweltering afternoon at the Feroz Shah Kotla. DD, after being 2/2 at the start, then blasted their way to a challenging 186/6 after 20 overs with the help of fighting half-centuries from Karun Nair and IPL debutant Sam Billings and a breathtaking cameo from Carlo Brathwaite.

In reply, the KKR batting order turned out to be a complete blooper today as none of the batsmen except Robin Uthappa could make any significant contribution to the chase. This lackluster batting performance eventually resulted in their loss as the team folded for just 159 runs, 27 runs short of the target.

The start was worse for DD as they lost their openers Quinton de Kock and Shreyas Iyer within no time. Andre Russell made quick inroads into the DD batting order, dismissing both of them off the 3rd and the 5th delivery in the first over. They were at a bothersome 2/2 after first over.

The side received another jolt after Gambhir introduced Narine in the 5th over. The West Indian struck with the wicket of Sanju Samson as DD further slipped to 32 for three after 5 overs KKR had gained an upper hand over the opposition. But, the Karun Nair (68 from 50 balls) and Sam Billings (54 from 34 balls) resurrected the innings with strokeful half centuries. The pair stitched 105 runs for the 4th wicket off just 69 balls in their rescue act before Umesh Yadav broke the stand in the 17th over. But, the job was well done as the following batsmen had a proper platform set to unleash their range of shit freely.

Unfortunately, Chris Morris, on his 29th birthday, could not emulate his last game’s performance and lasted only two balls before he was bowled by Yadav for a duck. But, then came the Trinidadian giant Carlos Brathwaite, who made his presence felt immediately, as he launched an assault on Yadav and Brad Hogg. The tall all-rounder struck 34 off 11 balls, helping DD gather 55 runs in the final five overs of the innings. His knock included a flurry of three fours and three sixes.

Russell was the pick of the attack by taking 3-26 in four overs while Yadav captured 3-33 in three overs.

KKR began the chase pretty steadily. But, skipper Zaheer khan took charge and landed a double blow to the DD side. After a tight first over, the skipper snapped Gambhir in the 3rd over and then topped it up with the wicket of Piyush Chawla in the 5th over. The unnecessary experiment of sending Piyush Chawla ahead of the in-form Surya Yadav by the KKR management created a mess of the chase. Not only did Chawla lose his wicket cheaply, it also affected the chase as the following batsman failed to make any useful contribution.

Yusuf Pathan and Suryakumar Yadav rebuilt the chase brief batting with Uthappa. However, both of them lost their wickets after getting starts. The lower middle order also could not hang around. Andre Rusell, however, raised hopes with his aggressive 12 balls 17 runs knock. However, he failed to take his team past the winning lien after Amit Mishra pulled off a stunning return catch in the 17th over.

The hopes of winning fell flat after Morris picked the wickets of Uthappa and Holder in the 18th over. Uthappa departed after making a fighting 72 from 52 balls. KKR eventually folded in the penultimate over after the last two remaining batsmen, Narine and Yadav were dismissed off consecutive deliveries.

Brief Scores:

Delhi Daredevils: 186/8 in 20 overs (Karun Nair 68; Andre Russell 3/26)

Kolkata Knight Riders: 159 all out in 18.3 overs (Robin Uthappa 72; Zaheer Khan 3/21)

Man of the Match: Carlos Brathwaite

Who was hailed and who was trolled? – Twitter Reactions: Delhi Daredevils beat KKR in a high scoring encounter