IPL 2021, SRH vs KKR: 3 reasons why the Kolkata Knight Riders won

An attacking batting display and some tight bowling helped the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) record a 10-run win over the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in their first game of the 2021 Indian Premier League (IPL).

After being put in to bat by David Warner, KKR got off to a flier thanks to Nitish Rana, before Rahul Tripathi and Dinesh Karthik played fiery cameos to take the team to 187/6. In response, SRH lost their openers cheaply and never really recovered despite the best efforts of Jonny Bairstow and Abdul Samad.

Here are 3 reasons why KKR beat SRH in Match 3 of IPL 2021.

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#3 Manish Pandey's momentum-sapping innings

Manish Pandey [PC: iplt20.com]

Manish Pandey has been entrusted with the No. 3 spot in the SRH batting lineup for a couple of seasons now. And while he had his most prolific campaign last year and notched up a fifty in the IPL 2021 game against KKR, his strike rate and ability to find the boundary against quality bowling have come under question.

Pandey came in to bat after SRH lost their captain early, and had to contend with the dismissal of Wriddhiman Saha as well. But even when he got set and had an in-form partner in Bairstow, the Karnataka-born batsman failed to step on the gas.

Pandey didn't find the boundary even once in overs 15-20, apart from the six he hit off the last ball when the game was already done. He couldn't manipulate the gaps well either, and had only one two in this period. Even over the course of his 44-ball stay at the crease, the 31-year-old managed only two fours and three sixes.

Pandey's knock looked good on paper, but completely sapped the momentum out of the SRH innings.

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#2 KKR captain Morgan utilized his bowlers smartly

Andre Russell [PC: iplt20.com]

KKR captain Eoin Morgan got his first full IPL season in charge off to a good start. Although he lasted only three balls at the crease, he made an impact in the second innings with some smart bowling changes.

Harbhajan Singh nearly dismissed dangerman Warner in the first over, before Prasidh Krishna, who was given the new ball for KKR like he was in India's recent series against England, did.

Pat Cummins was introduced only in the 6th over, while Shakib Al Hasan's first over in the powerplay produced the wicket of Saha. Varun Chakravarthy was held back for the later part of the middle overs on a surface which was a touch on the slower side, and he was good although he didn't pick up wickets.

Finally, KKR's first-choice death bowler Andre Russell turned up towards the end of the innings to keep a tight leash on the SRH batsmen.

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#1 KKR were on the attack right from the outset

Pat Cummins [PC: iplt20.com]

With both bat and ball, KKR were constantly on the attack in what has become a hallmark of Morgan-led teams.

Opening ahead of Rahul Tripathi, Nitish Rana found the boundary on a regular basis in the powerplay. Although Shubman Gill was deprived of strike and fell to Rashid Khan, Rana and Tripathi, who walked in at No. 3, never allowed the SRH bowlers to settle.

Only Rashid was excused of punishment as Bhuvneshwar Kumar, T Natarajan and Sandeep Sharma were taken to the cleaners. Even Mohammad Nabi, who finished with respectable figures of 2/32 in 4 overs, only did so because he pulled things back drastically in his final over.

In the second innings, KKR always had attacking fields in place to support their bowling. Overall, it was a solid performance from the 2-time champions, while SRH have some things to think about.