Kolkata, Skipper Kane Williamson led from the front with a classy 44-ball 50 as Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) coasted to a five-wicket victory against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in a rain-hit Indian Premier League (IPL) game at the Eden Gardens here on Saturday.
Chasing a modest 139 to win, New Zealand captain Williamson mixed caution with aggression (4×4, 16) as Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan gave him good support with a 21-ball 27.
Yusuf Pathan (17 not out) hit the winning runs with a six over square leg off Andre Russell as the visitors reached the target with six balls to spare.
This was SRH’s first triumph at the Eden in five attempts and their third straight victory this season.
Local boy Wriddhiman Saha (24; 15b 5×4 0x6) gave SRH a flying start before Sunil Narine (2/17) got his back in his very first delivery with a fullish delivery down the leg side which took a feather edge off the India Test stumper’s bat to Dinesh Karthik who took a sharp catch.
Narine also castled Shikhar Dhawan (7; 7b 1×4 0x6) with an overpitched ball which the India southpaw tried to defend and the ball sneaked under his bat.
At the end of Powerplay, SRH were 46/2 still needing 93 runs for victory.
Chinaman Kuldeep Yadav (1/23) accounted for former KKR batsman Manish Pandey, who was brilliant in the field taking two superb catches, with a fullish delivery that the 28-year old could not pick.
Then Williamson and Shakib stitched together a 59-run stand for the fourth wicket before the latter was caught in two minds whether to defend and hit, losing his leg stump in the process to Piyush Chawla (1/20).
But there was no stopping Williamson who brought up his fifty.
Williamson’s stay was cut short by Mitchell Johnson whose fullish delivery on the leg stump was flicked on to square leg where Andre Russell took an easy catch.
Earlier, India pace spearhead Bhuvneshwar Kumar delivered crucial blows as SRH made the most of an hour-long rain break and some excellent catching by Manish Pandey to restrict KKR to a modest 138/8.
Kumar (3/26) — back after recovering from a sore back — was ably supported by pacer Billy Stanlake (2/21) and Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan (2/21).
Pandey took two outstanding catches to send Nitish Rana (18; 16b 2×4 1×6) and Andre Russell (9; 5b 0x4 1×6) — back in the hut as SRH bowlers took control after a rain-induced halt when KKR were going steady at 52/1.
For the hosts, opener Chris Lynn (49; 34b 7×4 1×6) was the top-scorer as skipper Dinesh Karthik laboured to a 27-ball 29 hitting two fours and a six.
Brief scores: Kolkata Knight Riders 138/8 in 20 overs (Chris Lynn 49; Bhuvneshwar Kumar 3/26, Shakib Al Hasan 2/21, Billy Stanlake 2/21) lose to Sunrisers Hyderabad 139/5 (Kane Williamson 50; Sunil Narine 2/17)
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