"Umesh Express!" - Fans erupt as KKR speedster Umesh Yadav becomes Purple Cap holder in IPL 2022

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) fast bowler Umesh Yadav continued his sensational start to the IPL 2022 season with another brilliant performance, this time against the Punjab Kings (PBKS). The 34-year-old gave away just 23 runs in his four overs and picked up four wickets as PBKS were bundled out for just 137.

For someone who has played just two IPL games in the past two seasons, this is turning out to be an inspirational comeback for Yadav in white-ball cricket. The 34-year-old has made a statement that he is not someone who can just be seen as a backup pacer in the longest format of the game.

Fans on Twitter were thrilled to see the consistency with which Umesh Yadav has performed so far this season. Here are some of their reactions:

Umesh Yadav's accuracy stuns power-packed PBKS

PBKS made a statement of intent after their sensational chase of 206 runs against the Royal Challengers Bangalore in their opening game of the season. Many felt that this batting line-up was almost unstoppable.

However, KKR just got off to the best start possible after putting PBKS into bat. Skipper Mayank Agarwal was trapped right in from by Umesh Yadav and that set the tone nicely for the Knight Riders.

Bhanuka Rajapaksa once again threatened to score big, but was stopped in his tracks by Shivam Mavi. Shikhar Dhawan too departed and PBKS needed to consolidate their innings.

Liam Livingstone seemed to have settled at the crease and looked in the mood to break the shackles. However, skipper Shreyas Iyer showed great presence of mind to bring back his strike bowler. The English right-hander tried to clear the fence off Yadav's bowling but was caught at long off.

Yadav completed his fantastic spell by picking up wickets of Harpreet Brar and Rahul Chahar and completely sucked the momentum out of the PBKS innings. KKR have chased down a similar target in their opening game and will be confident of getting their second win of the season.