IPL 2021, KKR vs DC: Who won today's match?

Sunil Narine (21 off 10) did a Ravindra Jadeja as the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) got the better of the Delhi Capitals (DC) by three wickets in Match 41 of the 2021 Indian Premier League (IPL) in Sharjah.

A low-scoring encounter, the match was in the balance with five overs to go. Chasing 128, KKR needed 30 off the last five overs with five wickets in hand. Narine then clobbered Kagiso Rabada for two sixes and a four in the 16th over as the DC pacer leaked 21 runs.

After bowling a no-ball, Rabada was top-edged for a maximum as Narine swung his bat hard. The next ball was hammered over square leg for four, which was followed by the second six of the over - a back-of-a-length delivery clubbed over cow corner.

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Anrich Nortje forced Narine to slice one up in the air but the KKR batter had done his job. After Avesh Khan cleaned up Tim Southee (3), Nitish Rana (36 not out off 27) took KKR over the winning line in the 19th over, smashing Nortje for a boundary past third man.

Like in previous games, KKR came out with aggressive intent. Venkatesh Iyer took two fours off Nortje in the first over - one was punched between cover and mid-off and the other pulled to deep square leg. DC began with left-arm spinner Axar Patel at the other end and Shubman Gill launched him for a maximum over his head.

Off-spinner Lalit Yadav provided DC with a crucial breakthrough, castling Iyer (14) with a quicker one as the left-hander missed his flick. Rahul Tripathi (9) announced himself with a six over deep square leg before chipping a slower one from Avesh Khan to mid-off. The loss of wickets did not slow down Gill, though, as he swept Ravichandran Ashwin for a six.

Kagiso Rabada brought the contest alive with a wicket maiden. After five dot balls in the 11th over, he sent back Gill (30) with a back-of-a-length delivery that was miscued to long on.

In the next over, Ashwin had KKR skipper Eoin Morgan (0) with a good-length ball outside off that the left-hander edged to first slip. Considering the heated debate they were involved in after Ashwin’s dismissal, it wasn’t surprising that the the off-spinner gave Morgan a send-off.

Nitish Rana slammed Lalit Yadav for two sixes while Dinesh Karthik edged a four behind the wickets as 20 came off the 14th over to put KKR on top again. There was another twist in the tale, though, as Dinesh Karthik (12), having faced three dot balls, chopped a slower delivery from Avesh onto the stumps. Karthik shuffled around the crease but couldn’t upset the DC pacer’s rhythm.

Just when it seemed the match was getting really tight, Narine took the game away from DC with a bold counter-attack.

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Clinical KKR restrict strong DC batting to 127 for 9

KKR celebrate a wicket against DC. Pic: IPLT20.COM

On a challenging batting surface, KKR held DC to 127 for 9 after winning the toss and bowling first. Steve Smith and Rishabh Pant top-scored for DC with 39 each but neither was a typical T20 knock as both had to work hard for their runs. Apart from Pant and Smith, only Shikhar Dhawan (24 off 20) got into double figures. The others merely came to mark their attendance at the batting crease.

As he has been doing a lot in recent games, Dhawan got his innings underway with a flurry of boundaries. He hit five fours inside the first four overs before surviving a close lbw shout against Tim Southee. KKR skipper Eoin Morgan reviewed the not-out decision but Dhawan survived on umpire’s call.

The DC opener’s enterprising innings came to an end in the fifth over as he slashed a short and wide ball from Lockie Ferguson to cover point. With Varun Chakravarthy bowling a tight sixth over, conceding only four, DC ended the powerplay on 39 for 1. The batting side were dealt a massive bowl in the next over as Narine castled Shreyas Iyer (1) with one that spun in and beat the tentative batter’s defence.

Smith gave DC some momentum as the innings approached the halfway stage. The first two balls of the 10th over from Chakravarthy were dispatched for boundaries. One was tickled fine past the keeper and the other cut past deep point.

The former Aussie skipper was looking set for a big one. However, after a premeditated scoop off Ferguson went horribly wrong, hitting him in the groin, the unsettled batter was bowled next ball. It was like IPL 2020 all over again as Smith under-edged a heave onto the stumps. After that, DC’s innings was all Pant holding one end up and wickets falling at the other.

Shimron Hetmyer (4) holed out to long off as Venkatesh Iyer struck a big blow. Lalit Yadav (0) was clueless against a Narine delivery that turned in and trapped him in front. Axar Patel also fell without scoring, giving Iyer his second wicket.

Amidst the tough battle, there was a funny incident at the start of the 17th over as Pant tries to swat a ball that was heading towards the stump with his bat, forcing Dinesh Karthik to take evasive action. After hitting a couple of fours, Pant was run-out in the last over trying to add some runs for the team.

Before him, Ravichandran Ashwin (9) also perished trying to take on KKR debutant Tim Southee. Tempers flared as a few words were exchanged between Southee and Ashwin and then Ashwin and Morgan. At the end of it all, 127 was what DC managed.

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IPL 2021, KKR vs DC: Who was the Man of the Match?

Narine had a brilliant all-round match. He claimed 2 for 18 with the ball, dismissing Lalit Yadav and Shreyas Iyer. With the bat, he played the cameo that made all the difference between victory and defeat.

Nitish Rana, too, played a mature hand of 36 not out. Venkatesh Iyer (2/29) and Lockie Ferguson (2/10) were handy with the ball for KKR.

For DC, Smith and skipper Pant both scored 39 each. Avesh excelled with the ball, claiming 3 for 13 to keep the team’s hopes alive.

Narine was the deserved Man of the Match for his splendid all-round effort.