Twitter Reactions: CSK and KKR take fans on a roller coaster ride in a breathless encounter

In a game of wildly swinging fortunes, Chennai Super Kings somehow managed to secure an 18-run win against Kolkata Knight Riders.

By Pratyay Tiwari

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4 Min Read

Faf du Plessis Celebrating
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Faf du Plessis Celebrating. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI)

In a game of wildly swinging fortunes, Chennai Super Kings somehow managed to secure an 18-run win against Kolkata Knight Riders. Half-centuries from Ruturaj Gaikwad and Faf du Plessis led them to a massive total, and having sent back half of their opponents’ batting side inside six overs, they seemed well on the course of a victory before Andre Russell, Dinesh Karthik, and Pat Cummins went nuts to stage a fightback in vain.

Having called correctly, the Knight Riders’ skipper Eoin Morgan had no doubt in inserting the opponents, admitting that chasing has been the norm at the venue. There were questions regarding Gaikwad after a string of unimposing scores, and he shut them in some style, notching up a dominant half-century, laced with six fours and four sixes. He gave a hint of the kind of zone he was in in the second over, scorching a drive to the boundary off Pat Cummins, followed by a maximum over midwicket.

Knocking sensationally from the other end was Faf du Plessis, whose innings would become the fulcrum of his team set up a humungous total. If it was Cummins in the second, Varun Chakravarthy had to bore the brunt of their assault in the fourth over, leaking 12. The pair never took the foot off the accelerator, hitting seven boundaries and a couple of sixes amongst them to finish the powerplay 54/0.

Gaikwad, Faf du Plessis set up 220

Picking at least a boundary in every over, Gaikwad smoked Kamlesh Nagarkoti over long-on for a maximum a ball before he brought up his fourth half-century in the IPL. He belted another six and four off Prasidh Krishna to take the team past 100 in just the 12th over, and the opening partnership had grown to 115 when his threatening knock ended as he picked out Cummins at deep midwicket off Chakravarthy, who recovered well to finish 1/27 after going for runs earlier.

Having gotten to his half-century off 35 balls, du Plessis found the company of an aggressive Moeen Ali, who smothered two fours and as many sixes in a 12-ball 25-run cameo before Sunil Narine had him stumped. In at four, MS Dhoni finally picked a boundary off Narine on a free hit and took on Krishna in the next over, pumping him for a four and six before du Plessis smashed Andre Russell for three consecutive fours to move into the 80s.

Dhoni had only started to take off when Morgan grabbed a blinder to send him back for 17 off 8. The on and off chance of a centuryfor du Plessis suddenly shot up when he pummeled Cummins for two sixes in the final over, although a single on the penultimate delivery kept him unbeaten on 95 off 60.

KKR stumble early

Chasing 221 after Ravindra Jadeja slogged the last ball over midwicket for a six, KKR could not have been welcomed by a worse challenge than a fiery Deepak Chahar, who dismissed Shubman Gill for a golden duck, as he top-edged straight to Lungi Ngidi at third-man.

After being beaten twice in the first over, Nitish Rana got into his groove with a couple of fours against Sam Curran, but he skied an edge in Chahar’s next over that was well caught by a running Dhoni.

Morgan, then, nicked Chahar behind and Jadeja flew to his right to snaffle an excellent catch to end Narine’s outing in the same over. KKR suddenly found themselves 31/5 when Rahul Tripathi edged a short ball from Ngidi to Dhoni.

Russel, Cummins barge in 

Seeing his side sinking, Andre Russell walked in with combative ideas as he muscled two fours and a six straight after entering. KKR scripted an incredible recovery courtesy of a berserk 81-run stand from merely 39 deliveries with both Russell and Dinesh Karthik sending the bowlers to all corners. Having raced to a 22-ball 54, featuring six maximums and three fours, Russell misjudged a Curran delivery that cleaned him around the legs as he chose to let him go.

Keeping the counterattack on, Karthik smashed a six and four in the same over, but his 24-ball 40 came to an end in the 15th when Ngidi pinged him lbw. Although, Pat Cummins, who had already struck two fours and six by then, refused to give up and murdered Curran 6, 6, 6, 4, 6 in a whopping 30-run 16th over.

Cummins notched up his half-century off just 23 balls, while Ngidi sent back Nagarkoti for a duck. Nerves were evident in the 18th over, when Thakur conceded three wides in a 12-run over. Come down to 28 needed off the last two overs, Chakravarthy’s hesitation to come for a double led to his run-out in the penultimate over, while another run-out on the first ball of the final over with KKR needing 19 meant that they were all out for 202.

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