Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) scored 206 runs in the first innings of the 53rd match of the Indian Premier League 2025 (IPL 2025) against Rajasthan Royals (RR) at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on May 4.
After opting to bat first, KKR faced an early setback in their innings. By the end of the second over, KKR was 13/1. Sunil Narine (11 runs off 9 balls) was dismissed by Yudhvir Singh, who made use of the variations to clean up the former.
Rahmanullah Gurbaz (35 runs off 25 balls) and Ajinkya Rahane (30 runs off 24 balls) took the attack to Yudhvir in the fourth over off which 15 runs were scored. While Gurbaz collected two boundaries, Rahane adopted the aerial route and hammered a six.
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The duo continued to find boundaries at regular intervals, taking KKR to 56 runs at the fall of one wicket by the end of the powerplay.
The seventh over saw a breakthrough for RR as Maheesh Theekshana dismissed Gurbaz, who attempted a slog-sweep, but sent the ball flat to Shimron Hetmyer at deep mid-wicket.
KKR was 67/1 in seven overs. However, Theekshana, Wanindu Hasaranga and Riyan Parag spun a spin web and forced the KKR batters to apply brakes after Gurbaz’s dismissal.
At the 10-over mark, KKR’s score read 86/2. As the pressure was building up, it led to Rahane’s undoing at the hands of Parag in the 13th over.
This turned out to be a blessing in disguise for the Knight Riders. With Andre Russell’s (57* runs off 25 balls) arrival at the crease, KKR gained momentum. Russell flexed his muscles in the 16th over off Akash Madhwal, smacking three consecutive boundaries, including a six.
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The Caribbean star then tore apart Jofra Archer, who got hit for a six and four in the 17th over. Theekshana, who was in the middle of a brilliant spell and had given away only 18 runs in his first three overs, bowled the 18th. Russell destroyed his figures, smoking three consecutive sixes off the spinner.
Though Archer sent Angkrish Raghuvanshi (44 runs off 31 balls) packing in the 19th over, Russell continued with his blinder of an innings, bringing up his fifty in just 22 deliveries with a maximum. He followed up with a four. On the last delivery of the over, Russell muscled the ball straight down the ground but Parag despite making a brilliant fielding effort could not hold on to the catch.
Russell took the backseat in the final over with Rinku Singh (19* runs off 6 balls) coming to the party. The southpaw smacked Madhwal for two sixes and boundary as KKR finished their innings at 206 runs for the loss of four wickets.
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