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The first afternoon contest of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 saw the Punjab Kings (PBKS) host the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali on Saturday, April 1.
Leading KKR for the first time, Nitish Rana won the toss and opted to bowl first. The new opening pair of Shikhar Dhawan and Prabhsimran Singh got PBKS off to a solid start. However, it was Bhanuka Rajapaksa who shone with a half-century to provide a lavish cushion for the lower order to capitalize on.
The visitors fought back to restrict PBKS to 191-5 with Sam Curran playing a brief cameo.
In reply, KKR got off to a horrid start, losing two wickets in no time. They introduced Venkatesh Iyer as an impact player, benching Varun Chakravarthy in the process. No KKR batter was able to convert their starts as Rana and Rinku Singh fell in quick succession.
Andre Russell kept KKR in the hunt after coming to bat at the halfway stage with the scoreboard reading 80-5. However, he was unable to take the game deep with his cameo and perished in the 15th over.
Rain interrupted the proceedings in Mohali after the end of the 16th over and KKR were seven runs short of the par score.
The heavy persistent downpour had the final say as play did not commence, leaving PBKS as the winners by the DLS method and getting their campaign off to a winning start.
IPL 2023 Orange Cap updated list
Bhanuka Rajapaksa rose to the third spot after scoring 50 off 32 deliveries. His knock included five fours and two sixes. The top two spots are still occupied by Ruturaj Gaikwad (Chennai Super Kings) and Shubman Gill (Gujarat Titans) following their exceptional showing in the opening contest of IPL 2023.
The Sri Lankan batter's PBKS teammate, Shikhar Dhawan, also scored a well-compiled 40 runs off 29 deliveries to occupy the spot in the IPL 2023 Orange Cap standings.
Andre Russell entertained the crowd and kept KKR in the contest with a brief blitz. His explosive 35 off 19 deliveries pushed him to the fifth spot while his teammate Venkatesh Oyer occupied the sixth spot with 34 runs to his name.
IPL 2023 Purple Cap updated list
Arshdeep Singh took over the Purple Cap over from Rajvardhan Hangargekar with a brilliant spell under the lights.
The left-arm seamer began with two wickets in his first over by dismissing Mandeep Singh and Anukul Roy. He also took the crucial wicket of Venkatesh Iyer shortly before the rain interruption. Arshdeep finished with figures of 3-19 off his three overs.
Tim Southee was the most expensive bowler on offer, conceding 54 runs off his four overs. However, the KKR pacer picked up two wickets in his spell and occupies the sixth spot in the wicket-taking charts.
Who will win the Orange and Purple Cap in IPL 2023? Let us know what you think.
