The penultimate game of the Indian Premier League had fans excited. After all, it was a clash between two of the most in-form teams in the tournament. In the end, KKR fans, as well as the neutrals, were left disappointed as the game ended up being a highly one-sided affair.
Batting first, KKR were dismantled by an inspired Mumbai Indians bowling attack. Gautam Gambhir’s team could manage just 107 runs, a target easily chased down by Rohit Sharma and co.
Extra Cover: IPL 2017 Qualifier 2, MI vs KKR: 5 things that went wrong for Kolkata Knight Riders
Here are 5 memorable moments from the match that don't fade away, quite like the Axe Signature range of body perfumes:
#1 Karn Sharma’s insane spell
When something good comes from an unexpected source, it feels nice. However, when the same unexpected source provides something insane, it feels hardly believable. Karn Sharma’s spell for the Mumbai Indians was precisely that.
The left-handed batsman delivered a fiery spell with the ball as he finished with figures of 4-0-16-4, taking the important wickets of Sunil Narine, Gautam Gambhir, Ishank Jaggi and Colin de Grandhomme. Karn equalled Anil Kumble’s 8-year record for the best figures by a spinner in a knockout match of the IPL.
The Knight Riders had no answer to his unlikely brilliance and they were further washed away by…
#2 Jasprit Bumrah’s fury
When your team-mate takes four wickets in a game, it becomes almost impossible to better that performance. However, Jasprit Bumrah continued his good form and ended up with a performance that was arguably even better than Karn Sharma’s.
Bumrah couldn’t complete his quota of four overs, but in his three, he gave away only seven runs and also managed to bowl a maiden. He topped that off with three wickets, bagging the scalps of Chris Lynn, Robin Uthappa and Suryakumar Yadav – 3 of the best batsmen in the KKR line-up.
#3 Suryakumar Yadav’s final surge
All the star batsmen of the Knight Riders fell like a pack of cards as Mumbai Indians started the match with a bang. However, there was one among them who put up a brave fight: Suryakumar Yadav.
The right-hander played 25 balls and scored 31 runs, hitting two fours and a six in the process. His innings allowed KKR to cross the 100-run barrier, which at one point seemed impossible. While it would not prove to be enough in the end, he at least managed to spare his side some of the blushes.
#4 Piyush Chawla’s start
Despite the fact that Kolkata Knight Riders’ bowlers had literally nothing to defend, Piyush Chawla gave them hope with a blazing start to his spell. He might have ended up conceding 34 runs in his four overs, but his start was fiery in every sense of the word.
In his first two overs, the leggie gave away only seven runs, but that’s not even the best part. In that time, he took two wickets – the dangerous Lendl Simmons and the consistent Ambati Rayudu. However, he couldn’t carry on his good work as he was spanked out of the ground in his next two overs after Rohit Sharma and Krunal Pandya had settled down.
#5 Krunal Pandya’s finish
When the Knight Riders were batting, it felt as though the pitch was a potato patch that had nothing for the batsmen. Despite the fact that it was indeed a track that helped the bowlers, the Mumbai batsmen did a good job of holding their nerve on a tricky surface.
And no one did it better than Krunal Pandya. The elder Pandya scored 45 runs off 30 balls to make sure that his team crossed the line without any hiccups. His innings was adorned with eight beautifully hit boundaries as he steered the ship to success, ensuring Mumbai get a chance to exact revenge on the Rising Pune Supergiant in Hyderabad on Sunday.
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