Reliving the previous nine IPL finals

2012: Kolkata Knight Riders vs Chennai Super Kings

Manoj Tiwary hit the winning runs for KKR in the 2012 finals.

The Knight Riders, with a new look side, reached their first final of the IPL against Chennai. Batting first, Murali Vijay and Michael Hussey started off just like they had in the previous IPL. They added 87 in the first 11 overs, before Vijay fell to a brilliant catch by Shakib Al Hasan in the outfield.

Hussey carried on at the other end and completed his fifty. He found another ally in Suresh Raina, and stitched together a 73-run partnership, before Kallis’ golden arm brought the former’s end in the eighteenth over. Raina refused to stop, and finished on a whirlwind 73 off just 38 balls with three fours and five sixes.

The target became even more daunting for KKR, when Ben Hilfenhaus cleaned up Gautam Gambhir off only the fifth ball of the chase. Manvinder Bisla went for his shots straight away, and in the company of Kallis, assembled a swift partnership. He departed in the fifteen over with the score reading 139, but not before he had compiled a masterful 89 off just 48 balls.

Kallis held fort at the other end, even when Pathan and Shukla departed in quick succession. With 27 needed off 17, the game could have gone either way. Kallis got out in the penultimate over to make the equation tighter, but a couple of boundaries by Manoj Tiwary sealed the deal for KKR.