Gujarat beat Kolkata by 5 wickets in IPL

The Gujarat Lions climbed to the perch of VIVO IPL 2016 standings after they defeated the Kolkata Knight Riders by 5 wickets at the Eden Gardens yesterday night, reports iplt20.com.
Batting first, the hosts slumped to 24-4 before staging a remarkable recovery to finish at 158-4. When it was their turn to bat, the Lions got off to a brisk start through their openers, before Dinesh Karthik’s stroke-filled half-century and Aaron Finch’s blitz shut the doors on the home side.
Set to chase 159, the Lions opening pair of Dwayne Smith and Brendon McCullum could score only one run of the first over. That was the calm before the storm; in the second over, both batsmen picked up boundaries off Morne Morkel and KKR were on their way. Smith raced to 27 off 17 balls before he was beaten in flight by Shakib al Hasan in the sixth over.
Dinesh Karthik (who walked in when McCullum was dismissed), and Aaron Finch (who walked in when Suresh Raina was dismissed), played plenty of strokes – conventional and otherwise, some along the ground and some aerial. Both Karthik (51 from 29 balls) and Finch (29 from 10 balls, 3 fours, 2 sixes) were dismissed with their team on the brink. Ravindra Jadeja completed the deal in style, smashing Piyush Chawla over the ropes at midwicket. The Lions got across the line in the 18th over.
Earlier in the evening, the hosts got off to a dreadful start. Skipper Gautam Gambhir was bowled by Praveen Kumar in the third over, and Manish Pandey feathered one to the wicketkeeper without opening his account. Robin Uthappa felt for a Dhawal Kulkarni delivery and Suryakumar Yadav’s innings was culled by a sensational catch by Suresh Raina at slip. The Knight Riders were reeling at 24-4 in the sixth over. Then came the rescue through Shakib al Hasan and Yusuf Pathan. Yusuf brought up his half-century in the sixteenth over – needing 31 balls to get to the landmark.
Shakib was slow off the blocks, but on 33 scored from 36 balls switched the gear. With three overs remaining in the innings; the first two deliveries of the 18th over – bowled by Dwayne Bravo – were deposited into the stands. In the 19th over, he sent the ball to the boundary twice and in the final over he hit Bravo for a six.
Shakib was unbeaten on 66 from 49 balls, while Yusuf was unbeaten on 63 (41 balls). The 134-run partnership – KKR’s best for the 5th wicket – got the hosts finished at 158-4.
Praveen Kumar, who bowled 14 dot balls, was the most successful bowler and adjudged the Man of the Match.

: Praveen Kumar, for his spell of 4-1-19-2.

 

Gujarat beat Kolkata by 5 wickets in IPL

The Gujarat Lions climbed to the perch of VIVO IPL 2016 standings after they defeated the Kolkata Knight Riders by 5 wickets at the Eden Gardens yesterday night, reports iplt20.com. Batting first, the hosts slumped to 24-4 before staging a remarkable recovery to finish at 158-4. When it was their turn to bat, the Lions got off to a brisk start through their openers, before Dinesh Karthiks stroke-filled half-century and Aaron Finchs blitz shut the doors on the home side. Set to chase 159, the Lions opening pair of Dwayne Smith and Brendon McCullum could score only one run of the first over. That was the calm before the storm; in the second over, both batsmen picked up boundaries off Morne Morkel and KKR were on their way. Smith raced to 27 off 17 balls before he was beaten in flight by Shakib al Hasan in the sixth over. Dinesh Karthik (who walked in when McCullum was dismissed), and Aaron Finch (who walked in when Suresh Raina was dismissed), played plenty of strokes conventional and otherwise, some along the ground and some aerial. Both Karthik (51 from 29 balls) and Finch (29 from 10 balls, 3 fours, 2 sixes) were dismissed with their team on the brink. Ravindra Jadeja completed the deal in style, smashing Piyush Chawla over the ropes at midwicket. The Lions got across the line in the 18th over. Earlier in the evening, the hosts got off to a dreadful start. Skipper Gautam Gambhir was bowled by Praveen Kumar in the third over, and Manish Pandey feathered one to the wicketkeeper without opening his account. Robin Uthappa felt for a Dhawal Kulkarni delivery and Suryakumar Yadavs innings was culled by a sensational catch by Suresh Raina at slip. The Knight Riders were reeling at 24-4 in the sixth over. Then came the rescue through Shakib al Hasan and Yusuf Pathan. Yusuf brought up his half-century in the sixteenth over needing 31 balls to get to the landmark. Shakib was slow off the blocks, but on 33 scored from 36 balls switched the gear. With three overs remaining in the innings; the first two deliveries of the 18th over bowled by Dwayne Bravo were deposited into the stands. In the 19th over, he sent the ball to the boundary twice and in the final over he hit Bravo for a six. Shakib was unbeaten on 66 from 49 balls, while Yusuf was unbeaten on 63 (41 balls). The 134-run partnership KKRs best for the 5th wicket got the hosts finished at 158-4. Praveen Kumar, who bowled 14 dot balls, was the most successful bowler and adjudged the Man of the Match. : Praveen Kumar, for his spell of 4-1-19-2.