Bailey knock not enough for Kings XI

A fighting half-century from George Bailey wasn’t enough as a stunning Andre Russell counter-attack led the Kolkata Knight Riders to their second victory of the tournament.

Bailey’s 45-ball 60 and 63-run stand with Glenn Maxwell could only lift Punjab to 9-155 in their 20 overs; a total overhauled by Kolkata with 13 balls to spare thanks to Russell’s blistering 66. Having also picked up a couple of wickets earlier, the West Indian was the clear choice for the man-of-the-match honours.Image Id: ~/media/F7E0D43648E146CBA99392546645B30D

Bailey couldn't get his side over the line // BCCI

Kolkata slumped to 5-60 at one stage thanks to Sandeep Sharma’s best-ever IPL figures of 4-25, but Mitchell Johnson and the rest of the Punjab bowlers failed to control the marauding bat of Russell.

Johnson had yet another off night as he finished with figures of 1-41 from 3.5 overs.

With Shakib al Hasan away on Bangladesh national duties, the Knight Riders brought in Dutch all-rounder Ryan ten Doeschate to prop up the lower-middle-order. KC Cariappa also made way for Umesh Yadav.

The out-of-form David Miller was rested for Punjab and they brought in all-rounder Thisara Perer,a while Rishi Dhawan was replaced by Gurkeerat Mann.

Kings XI opener Vijay’s tournament has seen him get three starts from as many games and, while he had played a few delightful strokes in those innings, his failure to push on would be a concern.

Vjiay’s stay was a brief one this time, Yadav, who was back into the side after being dropped last game, striking with his fourth delivery – the opener fending off a bouncer to square-leg.

The last time these two teams met, Wriddhiman Saha had surprised with a swashbuckling century.

On this occasion, he was sent in at three and met by the fiery pair of Yadav and Morne Morkel.

Opting to take on the bowling, he played two pulls in Yadav’s second over to collect 10 runs and get his side’s innings moving.

Sadly, it was the pull shot that would prove his undoing, the wicketkeeper-batsman playing too early at Morkel, to toe-end a catch to the slips.

Two balls into the fifth over, Sehwag’s scratchy 10-ball stint at the crease was ended by Andre Russell, the opener flicking straight to the square-leg fielder, to have Punjab in trouble at 3-27.

Glenn Maxwell and George Bailey then came to the crease and attempted to pull last year’s minor premiers out of the mire.Image Id: ~/media/4DEE9C05F9F14919AE7B0F731A620876

Maxwell looked in fine touch against KKR // BCCI

It's rare for Maxwell to look to get his eye in, but that appeared ambition tonight. A bouncer from Morkel was left alone and the allrounder used up five deliveries in Sunil Narine’s over before getting himself a run.

The regular Maxwell was still making an appearance however, with the 26-year-old backing away to hit a six and a four in Morkel’s third over.

Pathan made a potentially costly error when he dropped a sitter off Russell, but the West Indian wouldn’t make the same mistake, snaring a diving catch at deep cover remove Maxwell.

The Aussie pair had added 63 by that point and had pushed the run-rate up past eight an over.

Bailey, who walked out at five, cracked a boundary on each side of the wicket off his first two deliveries a pull and cut-shot to the rope breathing life into a stalling Kings XI innings.Image Id: ~/media/DAE8D292785C42EF8C1B65003EC5B69F

Bailey was dominant on all sides of the wicket // BCCI

He slowed down after that in a bid to hold his end up, manoeuvring his way to his second half-century the tournament.

By the end of the innings, he had also edged past David Warner as the tournament’s leading run-scorer and orange-cap wearer.

With Thisara Perera falling shortly after, Bailey’s task became tougher; the push for quick runs tempered by his need to see the innings out.

Punjab finally exploded in the 17th, with both Bailey and new batsman Gurkeerat smashing Chawla for a six each, the captain following it up with two fours in as many deliveries off Yadav.

Narine got his first wicket this IPL - and first after coming back with his remodelled action - when Axar Patel holed out to long-off, while Bailey’s 45-ball 60 was ended by a run-out in the final over as he attempted to keep the strike.

Yadav finished with three wickets and Narine conceded just 17 from his four overs, the two bowlers instrumental in restricting Punjab to 9-155.

In reply, Robin Uthappa was adjudged lbw to an incoming delivery from Sandeep Sharma.Image Id: ~/media/EA5DF596E3A6485F908B63DD0BAFD2D5

Sandeep was the pick of the Kings XI bowlers

Manish Pandey then flicked one straight to square-leg off the same bowler. He had cracked two fours off successive balls just prior to the dismissal but failed to keep the third one down.

Suryakumar Yadav’s positive approach to batting was evident in Kolkata’s first win over the Mumbai Indians. He smashed five sixes in his 20-ball 46 that night and left the Mumbai bowlers clueless with his unorthodox batting.

The approach remained the same today and he batted at exactly the same strike-rate as that match. Unfortunately, this innings was a fair-way shorter.

Yadav opened his account with a ramp shot through the slips and then greeted Johnson with two sixes in his first over.

He recorded his second four with a neat dab through the slips but when Yadav attempted to repeat that stroke off a Perera slower ball, he failed to find the pace he required and Saha took a diving catch behind the stumps

If that wicket had the Knight Riders struggling, the next over saw Sandeep Kolkata gasping to stay afloat.

Gambhir’s attempt at a wide delivery left him with an edge to the keeper and ten Doeschate’s season started on a sour note as he was declared out lbw.

The next delivery, the hat-trick ball, was played out but that left Kolkata 5-60 after eight and in deep trouble.

Russell saved the evening for the defending champions.Image Id: ~/media/93544D58229A49CA90591BBA1DE0B226

Andre Russell would prove at match-winner for KKR // BCCI

At first, it was more misses than hits but when they did connect, they blazed a trail to the fence.

Kolkata needed 88 from the last 10 overs with Johnson returning for his second spell after having conceded 15 from his first over. Russell bludgeoned two boundaries through the off-side. He followed it up with a four off a Perera slower ball, having seemingly read the bowler’s intentions beforehand.

In a bid to slow the pace down, Bailey brought spinner Patel into the attack, but Russell had gotten found his groove by then.

A slog went for a four through mid-wicket, a sweep for six in that same region and, a slightly shorter delivery was ferociously cut through backward point. 19 came from the over and the required-rate was back near where it was at the start of the innings.

Russell was only warming up however.

Johnson was peppered for two more Russell boundaries in his third over before Pathan got in on the act with a couple of fours of his own in the 15^th.

Perera had been economical up until his fourth over; having conceded 19 from his first three, he ended with figures of 1-33. Russell cracked him for a four and a six to bring up his half-century from only 28 deliveries.Image Id: ~/media/64597C5D8974498E9CAFEAD622D507E9

Johnson got his man too late // BCCI

Having led the revival from 5-60, Russell was finally dismissed by Johnson, missing an attempted hoick over mid-wicket.

But by then the game was all-but over, with Kolkata needing just the one run. Chawla, who had scored the winning run in the last IPL final against Johnson, was left to repeat the feat with 13 balls to spare.