IPL 2022: [Watch] Lockie Ferguson grabs a stunning catch under pressure to send back Andre Russell

There are under-pressure catches and then there's Gujarat Titans pacer Lockie Ferguson's grab at fine-leg to send back Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) all-rounder Andre Russell in the final over of a crunch IPL 2022 match on Saturday.

Chasing 157, KKR were once again dependent on Russell to take them home. He was up for the challenge too, hitting 48 (25) after the top-order collapsed to 98-6. The equation had come down to 18 off the last over and Russell was on strike. He started brilliantly, tonking Alzari Joseph for a massive six.

The next delivery was a short ball on the stumps. Russell had already cleared his left leg and came into an awkward position to edge it high towards square-leg. Ferguson ran to his left from fine-leg and almost misjudged it. But his eyes were stuck on the ball, which allowed him to lean back and across and get both hands to it.

Here's a video of the same:

Ferguson's catch was a match-winning effort for his team. Russell's wicket left tail-enders Umesh Yadav and Tim Southee to get 12 runs from four balls. Joseph held his nerve and prevented them from doing it, taking GT to a brilliant 8-run win.

Lockie Ferguson's brilliance exposes KKR's flaws

This was the New Zealand pacer's second major contribution in the match. Earlier, he had dismissed middle-order Nitish Rana for 2 (7). The left-hander was expecting a short ball and didn't move his feet to a pacy-length ball on the off-stump. The ball took the outside edge to the wicketkeeper.

Both the wicket and catch exposed KKR's biggest weaknesses this season. They have been over-reliant on Russell, who has already won them a game and brought them close in other games.

Rana, apart from his 54 against Sunrisers Hyderabad, has been on a poor run of form, considering KKR spent ₹8 crores to get him at the mega-auction.