IPL 2022, KKR vs PBKS HIGHLIGHTS: Russell powers Kolkata to six-wicket win against Punjab at Wankhede

“We didn’t bat well enough. We showed some real fight with the ball initially and then Dre Russ came in and got going. Credit to him for taking the game away from us like that. I think it was a 170ish wicket. We started off well but could not capitalize, there were a few soft dismissals. But it is fine as it is the start of the tournament. They (bowlers) pulled back nicely for us with 4 for 50 we were in the game, but Russell took the game away. There were a lot of positives to take away.”

A 31-ball 70, laced with 8 sixes and two boundaries, helps Kolkata wrap up the 138 chase in just 14.3 overs at the Wankhede Stadium.

A four down to long-off fence and Russell brings up his 10th half-century in the tournament, off just 26 balls. 

4-1-13-2 – That’s Rahul Chahar’s bowling figure in this match which comprises 13 dots and zero boundaries along with two wickets.

Russell welcomes Odean Smith with a boundary in the 12th over before hitting his compatriot for three sixes as he single-handedly reduces the equation to 29 needed from 48.

The leg-spinner gives away just six runs in his third over as KKR now need 59 runs more to win in 54 balls. 

Harpreet returns for his second over and Russell pulled off two monstrous sixes against the spinner, both over mid-wicket.

KKR 73/4 in 10 overs vs PBKS (137)

Harpreet Brar was introduced in the over after powerplay and he conceded only three singles while Chahar gave away just two runs in the next over. The asking rate has suddenly gone past seven now.

KKR 56/4 in 9 overs vs PBKS (137)

After three dot balls, Iyer looks to break free, but managed to get the top edge as the ball ballooned up in the air and Rabada took it comfortably at mid-wicket. A delivery later he dismissed Nitish Rana for duck.

KKR 51/4 in 7 overs vs PBKS (137)

Shreyas Iyer’s 11-ball 26 helped Kolkata finish the powerplay phase with 51 runs on the board for the loss of two wickets. They need 87 runs more to win. 

Venkatesh looks to capitalise on the width offered by the length delivery from Odean Smith, but Harpreet stopped the effort perfectly with a jugling catch at cover as he departed for just 3 (7).

KKR 38/2 in 4.3 overs vs PBKS (137)

Shreyas smacked the final two balls of Arshdeep’s second over for boundaries – first one through mid off and the other over backward point.

KKR 25/1 in 3 overs vs PBKS (137)

After a 16-ball 25 with the bat, Rabada gets his first job done with the ball as he dismissed Rahane for 12 (11). Odean Smith takes a perfect low catch at short third man. 

KKR 14/1 in 2 overs vs PBKS (137)

He gets off the mark with a four driven through mid-wicket and then glances the fourth ball through square leg for a second boundary. With that, he reached the milestone of 4000 runs in IPL.

KKR 8/0 in 1 over vs PBKS (137)

Venkatesh Iyer and Ajinkya Rahane make their way to the middle. Arshdeep Singh set to open the attack for Punjab. 

“Feels very happy and lively. Coming back after a long time and doing well feels sweet. To do things that you wish for, it’s a great feeling. My job is to do well in the powerplay and take wickets. If I do that, it benefits the team. I think it’s a chaseable score. Our first game here had a slightly sticky surface but it’s played better today and we shouldn’t have many hiccups chasing the score down.”

A Southee stunner and a horrible mix-up ends Punjab’s disappointing innings for just 137 runs in 18.2 overs 

After Southee, Rabada smacks young Mavi for two straight sixes in the 18th over while Odean Smith ended the over with a huge, huge six towards fine leg off the top edge of the bat. 

PBKS 137/8 in 18 overs

Rabada, who got handed his PBKS cap today, welcomed Southee with a boundary in his final over before smashing him for two huge consecutive sixes.

PBKS 120/8 in 17 overs

In his four-over spell, Varun conceded just 14 runs, comprising 14 dots and zero boundaries, albeit going wicketless

Well, Umesh can pick wickets in the middle overs as well. Good length delivery, angled across and topples the off stump as Harpreet is dismissed for just 14 (18). A delivery later he dismissed Rahul Chahar for a duck.

PBKS 102/8 in 14.4 overs

In 4 overs, Narine conceded only 23 runs, comprising 13 dots, 1 four and as many sixes. 

PBKS 102/6 in 14 overs

The spinners choked the batters with a lot of dot balls and Southee got the reward after that as he dismissed Shahrukh Khan for a duck. PBKS go 6 down now 

It was a perfect off-break delivery to Raj Bawa, who was squared up completely and subsequently fell for the the trick. He departed for 11 (13).

PBKS 84/5 in 9.3 overs

Umesh delivered a length ball but placed it a tad wider than the previous delivery and Livingstone’s bat swung the other way. The ball went high and just when it looked to cross the long-off boundary, Southee picked the catch right on the edge. PBKS go 4 down.

Raj Bawa, who was dismissed for a duck in the previous game, survived a run-out scare in the second ball of the eighth over. Narine made a good start to the game, conceding only five runs in his first over. Strategic timeout!

PBKS 70/3 in 8 overs

In his second over of the game, Varun conceded only three singles.

PBKS 65/3 in 7 overs

In the second ball of the final over of the powerplay, Livingstone shimmied down the track to muscle the length ball high and over mid-wicket for a six. Dhawan then hit his first boundary. Sliced the shorter and wider one towards third man for a four. Southee dished out the same, but changed his length a bit and got an instant revenge. Dhawan departs for 16 (15)

PBKS 62/3 in 5.5 overs

Varun Chakravarthy comes into the attack. Irfan Pathan had suggested this in the pre-game discussion. Eight runs came off the over.

PBKS 51/2 in 5 overs

Rajapaksa is on fire today! He tucked the first ball that was down the leg side towards fine leg for a boundary. He then smashed Shivam Mavi for back-to-back sixes, both towards long-on. This has been a superb counterpunch from the Sri Lankan batter. Mavi changed his angle and dished out a slower ball outside off, but Rajapaksa’s approach remained the same as he dispatched it high and over deep mid-wicket for a third consecutive six. But it is Mavi who has the last laugh as he dismisses him in the fifth ball of the over.

PBKS 43/2 in 3.5 overs

Rajapaksa got the second ball from Umesh in the thrid over sneak between backward point and short third man for a boundary while Dhawan shimmied down the track in the fourth ball to hit a six over the bowler’s head. 14 runs came off the over.

PBKS 21/1 in 3 overs

It is a massive strike from KKR as Punjab lose their captain Mayank. It was Umesh’s 50th wicket in the powerplay in his IPL career.

Most wickets in powerplay

Sandeep Sharma: 53

Zaheer Khan: 52

Bhuvneshwar Kumar: 51

Umesh Yadav: 50

PBKS 2/1 in 1 over 

Shikhar Dhawan, Mayank Agarwal make their way out to the middle. Umesh Yadav to open KKR’s attack.

“When we sat down at the auction, we had a strategy to put together a squad, we’re really happy with the way we have put the squad together. Sort of put the playing XI at the auction itself more or less and then we started putting the younger lot. There’s some exciting talent in the squad and we waited for the overseas players to come in, one-by-one they are all coming in. In a couple of days we’ll have the full squad. Good to have some quality players coming in. We are not looking that far (playoffs) ahead, one game at a time.”

Speaking to Star Sports, the former India all-rounder feels that Kolkata can stop Shikhar Dhawan early on by “surprising him with a yorker” or bringing in Varun Chakravarthy early on, who has dismissed him twice in IPL already in 27 balls for 28 runs.

Punjab Kings (Playing XI): Mayank Agarwal(c), Shikhar Dhawan, Liam Livingstone, Bhanuka Rajapaksa(w), Shahrukh Khan, Odean Smith, Raj Bawa, Arshdeep Singh, Harpreet Brar, Kagiso Rabada, Rahul Chahar

Kolkata Knight Riders (Playing XI): Ajinkya Rahane, Venkatesh Iyer, Nitish Rana, Shreyas Iyer(c), Sam Billings(w), Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Tim Southee, Umesh Yadav, Shivam Mavi, Varun Chakaravarthy

Rabada in for Sandeep Sharma. “I thought he (Sandeep) bowled well last game but he unfortunately misses out as we had to get KG back in,” said Mayank.

“We need to start well, assess the conditions early and bat well. We’re just looking to play with the right attitude and right energy, if we do that, the results will take care of themselves.”

Shivam Mavi in for Sheldon Jackson. This means Sam Billings will be the wicketkeeper. Iyer said that KKR are looking to strengthen their bowling and hence the change.

“We’re going to bowl first. The reason is obviously the swimming pool (of dew) that’s visible in the evenings. As I said last game, it’s about giving it your all to defend no matter what score you have on the board. All the players are dedicated and focused to perform their roles for the last two games. We can’t complain (about having three games in a week), we’re all professionals.”

Kolkata Knight Riders wins the toss and opts to bowl at the Wankhede Stadium against Punjab Kings

“We saw the positive nature and the belief in this group in the last game defending a small total. You just have to adapt. All the venues have different attributes. Dew is a massive factor and the side that deals with it the best has a massive advantage. Training with the wet ball and getting as close to match situation as possible is key. Shreyas Iyer has been brilliant so far. It is early stages and he is young, energetic and has a lot of ideas. It is a dream to do what we do and I want to do it for as long as possible. Tremendous to be part of a league such as this.”

“Games are coming thick and fast here, already the third game in Wankhede and the truth is it has not been easy to bat on. The first pitch had some spongy bounce and it was not easy for batters to get on top of the bounce. Pitch number 2 had a nice tinge of grass, there was a little bit of swing and lateral movement, all of that was making it difficult for the batters. This (today’s pitch), I am not going to say it is a belter. But it is a very good looking pitch and there will be good balance between bat and ball. There is little grass and it is harder for the ball to get stuck into the surface. I still think it is going to move around, we will get some movement but it is not going to be as tricky in the powerplay.”

If Narine scores 34 runs, he will reach the milestone of 1000 runs in IPL and will subsequently join compatriot Dwayne Bravo and CSK captain Ravindra Jadeja in the elusive list of cricketers who have scored 1000 runs and picked 100 wickets in their IPL career, Jadeja has scored 2429 runs and picked 127 wickets in the tournament while Bravo has scored 1538 runs and picked 171 wickets. Narine has picked 144 wickets in 136 IPL games and has presently a tally of 966 runs.

Sunil Narine and Nitish Rana enjoy facing Sandeep, having scored at a rate of 205.26 and 177.50 against the pacer in IPL without being dismissed once. On the other hand, Sandeep, IPL’s leading wicket-taker in the powerplay, has dismissed Shreyas Iyer thrice in 56 balls for less than a run-a-ball rate. He has also dismissed Rahane twice in 77 balls for 71 runs, but is yet to bowl to Venkatesh Iyer.

KKR’s only concern will be pertaining to the fitness of Russell. Here is the probable playing XI for KKR…

Ajinkya Rahane, Venkatesh Iyer, Nitish Rana, Shreyas Iyer (c), Sam Billings, Sheldon Jackson (wk), Andre Russell/ Nabi/Karunaratne, Sunil Narine, Tim Southee, Umesh Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy

After a winning start to the season, the only change Punjab fans can expect is the debut of Rabada and hence will replace Harpreet Brar. Here is the probable playing XI for PBKS…

Mayank Agarwal (c), Shikhar Dhawan, Liam Livingstone, Bhanuka Rajapaksa (wk), Shahrukh Khan, Odean Smith, Raj Bawa, Arshdeep Singh, Kagiso Rabada, Sandeep Sharma, Rahul Chahar.

Chasing team won both the matches at the Wankhede this season and since 2018, they have lost only 10 times in 28 games at the venue in IPL. So team winning the toss, will be wanting to bowl first.

McCullum had revealed that the Windies all-rounder was sore after he made a fielding effort during the last game, where he bowled only three overs. If unfit, KKR are likely to go with Mohammad Nabi or Chamika Karunaratne

“I want us to continue to keep that in the team because that’s what served this side so well last year. And I think you know the way we’ve set our team up with the auction, the players that we picked that suits them as well. Sometimes you get to go a little bit too hard. But now we know where the line is and if we can add a little bit of craft with the wickets we’re coming up against and look to use the bounce as our friend rather than our foe then I think it gives us a good chance.”

KKR have won five of their eight games against Punjab Kings in IPL since 2018. However, they have won just two of their 12 games at the Wankhede Stadium, one of which came against CSK in IPL 2022 season opener. PBKS, on the other end, have won six of their 14 games at the venue.

Back after Australia’s victorious 1-0 win in Pakistan, Cummins has joined the KKR squad and has begun his quarantine period. 

In two games, Umesh Yadav, who was picked by KKR at the mega auction in February, picked four wickets, all of which were with the new ball. In six overs in the powerplay, he conceded at 4 an over with a strike rate of 9. Since 2018, Umesh has picked 22 wickets with the new ball. Only Deepak Chahar (42) and Trent Boult (28) has picked more wickets in the powerplay during that phase.

With Rabada set to return, the key contest of the match will be the South African speedster versus Andre Russell. Remember that Super Over battle a few season back? Against Rabada, Russell has scored 60 runs in 27 balls for one dismissal. 47 of those runs were scored in the death overs at a strike rate of 293.8 for no dismissal.

He is out of quarantine and he is all geared up to play his first game in IPL 2022. After being released from Delhi Capitals, Rabada was roped in for INR 9.25 crore by Punjab. He is the third highest wicket taker in IPL in the death overs since 2019, picking 45 wickets at an economy rate of 9.37.

Mayank Agarwal(c), Shikhar Dhawan, Liam Livingstone, Bhanuka Rajapaksa(w), Shahrukh Khan, Odean Smith, Raj Bawa, Arshdeep Singh, Harpreet Brar, Sandeep Sharma, Rahul Chahar, Prabhsimran Singh, Rishi Dhawan, Benny Howell, Ishan Porel, Vaibhav Arora, Ansh Patel, Atharva Taide, Prerak Mankad, Jitesh Sharma, Kagiso Rabada, Writtick Chatterjee, Baltej Singh

Ajinkya Rahane, Venkatesh Iyer, Nitish Rana, Shreyas Iyer(c), Sam Billings, Sheldon Jackson(w), Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Tim Southee, Umesh Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy, Shivam Mavi, Mohammad Nabi, Chamika Karunaratne, Baba Indrajith, Rinku Singh, Anukul Roy, Pratham Singh, Abhijeet Tomar, Rasikh Salam, Aman Hakim Khan, Ashok Sharma, Ramesh Kumar

The toss is already playing a significant role in the tournament and both captains will look to bowl first at the venue. This is the third IPL 2022 game at the iconic Wankhede and batting hasn’t looked easy on the surface so far.

Chennai managed to score just 131 in the season-opener while Lucknow stuttered to 29 for four against Mohammed Shami’s opening spell in their first-ever IPL match.

As the action shifts to Wankhede, Kolkata will rely heavily on Ajinkya Rahane, who has grown up playing at the venue. The two-time champions would expect Rahane and Venkatesh Iyer to provide a strong start.

KKR enter the game at the back of a three-wicket loss against RCB. Though they manged to make it a close contest, a below-par total of 128 didn’t seem enough on a Mumbai surface.

Hello and welcome to the live coverage of match no.8 of IPL 2022 where two-time league winners Kolkata Knight Riders will take on Mayank Agarwal-led Punjab Kings at the Wankhede Stadium. Stay tuned for more updates!