The Rising Pune Supergiants failed to arrest their losing streak with MS Dhoni losing four IPL matches for the first time as a skipper as the KKR edged out the hosts in a thrilling contest at the MCA Stadium in Pune.
Also read: IPL 2016, Stats: Suryakumar Yadav's maiden fifty propels Kolkata to a close win in Pune
Chasing the target of 161, KKR lost as many as eight wickets before Umesh Yadav popped up with a six to finally clinch the match after some tense moments.
For RPS, Ajinkya Rahane yet again delivered a good start while Steven Smith continued his struggle. They finished off strongly after a slow start. But, in the end, the total proved too little as Suryakumar Yadav led the KKR run-chase while several others chipped in with useful contributions before Umesh finished off the match in style.
There were several memorable moments from the match that don't fade away, quite like the Axe Signature range of body perfumes. Here are five of the best:
Ajinkya Rahane delivers yet again
When it comes to the IPL, Ajinkya Rahane is an ever present at the top of the order and more often than not, he has delivered. The level of consistency that he displays is exemplary and time and again he gives the platform to his side that allows the batsmen lower down the order to accelerate without worry and that's exactly what happened tonight as well.
Notwithstanding the early loss of Faf du Plessis, Rahane stood ground and concentrated on singles while picking up boundaries in between to help RPS get off to a decent start. Once the half-way mark was reached, Rahane started getting more adventurous and we got to see some innovative shots from the Mumbai cricketer as well.
Once again, Rahane sacrificed his wicket going for the big shots, but not before he had done all the hard work for his team.
Shakib Al Hasan's beauty to Faf du Plessis
Up until last year, Shakib Al Hasan was an ever-present in the KKR side, but with the plethora of options in the spin department, skipper Gautam Gambhir has been shuffling his spinners around. The Bangladeshi all-rounder got an opportunity tonight and he showed yet again why he is considered one of the best active all-rounders in the game.
When Shakib came on to bowl in the fourth over, Laxman Sivaramakrishnan – the commentator on air – reminded the spectators how the left-armer is not a big turner of the ball. But, as we know, the guile and ability to deceive a batsman are more important when it comes to the slow bowlers.
The final delivery seemed to come in before moving slightly away and it was just enough to outfox Du Plessis who was left speechless as the ball clipped the off stump bails to give KKR their first wicket on the night.
Rajagopal Sathish – an unlikely hero for KKR
Rajagopal Sathish's previous IPL appearance came two years ago and he would have most probably continued to remain on the sidelines had Manish Pandey not been ruled out due to chicken pox. But he made the most of the opportunity through his lively outing on the field.
A mechanical engineer by qualification, Sathish has earned a reputation as a fielding superstar in domestic circles and he exhibited those qualities right away, diving brilliantly to the left to prevent what looked like a certain boundary off the bat of Du Plessis in the very first over.
He went on to bowl three overs as well when, by his own admission, he was not expecting to roll his arm over. He even managed to pick up the wicket of Thisara Perera while conceding only 20 runs.
Suryakumar Yadav's match-winning innings
Rajagopal Sathish was not the only one to benefit from Manish Pandey's absence from the KKR line-up. Following the dismissal of the ever dependable Robin Uthappa for a first ball duck, Suryakumar Yadav walked out to the middle to join his skipper in the middle and he played a superb innings to guide his team home.
He started off in a frenzy with a number of big shots before settling down and focusing on singles and doubles as the target approached closer. Once Yusuf Pathan came into bat, Yadav was more than happy to take the backseat and allow his more illustrious teammate to take on the bowling, but Yadav made sure to keep his wicket intact and bring up his maiden IPL fifty thus helping KKR to a closely fought victory.
Umesh Yadav's six to win the match
Umesh Yadav remained a mere spectator till the 17th over of the RPS innings as skipper Gautam Gambhir decided not to use the speedster's services until the slog overs. He didn't disappoint however when called upon and dismissed the dangerous Albie Morkel before he could do further damage having already hit two huge sixes by then. He conceded only 16 runs in his two overs, but who knew that more was in store with the bat as well.
KKR were pretty much on top during the entire run-chase even though the side lost their ever-dependable opening pair of Uthappa and Gambhir early on. They still managed to make a quick start thanks mainly to Suryakumar Yadav, while the likes of Yusuf Pathan and Andre Russell helped maintain their ascendancy over RPS.
However, a flurry of wickets late on left KKR needing 5 runs of four balls with just two wickets in hand. Umesh Yadav though was in no mood to take his time as he decided to go after Thisara Perera and he managed to connect with the ball in a good enough manner to send the ball sailing over the ropes to help KKR seal the win.
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