Phil Salt and Mitchell Starc made it a Bengali New Year to remember for the Kolkata Knight Riders fans at Eden Gardens. They helped the hosts thump Lucknow Super Giants by eight wickets on Sunday.
Starc picked up important LSG wickets smartly to finish with 3 for 28. And they’re his best figures of the season. While Salt led the charge in the chase with an unbeaten 47-ball 89. KKR, and now sits second on the points table.
Notably, KKR were also left chasing a comfortable target courtesy of their spinners’ efforts in the middle overs. They did not let LSG break away, despite having wickets in hand. Keep reading to know how both cricket stars knocked out the LSG.
Salt Shakes up LSG for KKR Win | Mitchell Starc
After the game, KL Rahul described the defeat as a “proper hammering”, and the prime reason for that was Phil Salt. Having been dismissed for a duck in Chennai in KKR’s previous game, Salt was nearly out for a duck again when he clipped debutant Shamar Joseph to a short leg.
Luckily for Salt, Yash Thakur dropped him and even if he hadn’t, Joseph’s front-foot no-ball would’ve given him a reprieve anyway. After that let-off, Salt finished the first over with a six down the ground, and then continued to go for it through the powerplay.
From the other end, Shreyas Iyer made up for a slow start to finish unbeaten for the second time this season. He did not need to take risks, given Salt’s brisk scoring and the two early wickets.
He played aggressively on shots only as the target got closer. He was particularly strong off his hips as the LSG pacers erred by bowling too many times on a leg-stump line. His unbroken partnership of 120 with Salt was the highest third-wicket stand for KKR in the IPL.
Starc Leads KKR’s Bowling Charge
After Vaibhav Arora struck early to remove Quinton de Kock, Shreyas gave Starc a third powerplay over in the afternoon heat to find another wicket. He did that when an out-of-form Deepak Hooda sliced him to a backward point in the fifth over.
Rahul and the No. 4 Ayush Badoni then consolidated to take LSG to 72 for 2 in ten overs. However, Rahul’s attempt to up his scoring rate resulted in his dismissal. Rahul struck Andre Russell for a six to start the 11th over, but while attempting a repeat next ball, he holed out for 39 at deep midwicket.
At 109 for 4 in 14 overs, LSG was at risk of finishing well under par. The situation became more dire when Badoni top-edged Narine in the 15th for a laboured 27-ball 29. Narine would concede no boundaries as he finished with 1 for 17.
However, Starc stopped further damage in the 20th over, when he had Pooran nicking behind off the first ball. That ensured LSG would score only 52 runs off the final six overs, with Starc embellishing his returns with a third wicket off the final delivery of the innings.
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Zartash Zulfiqar is a passionate cricket writer with a love for cricket that shines through in every word. From match analyses to player profiles, she delivers insightful commentary that resonates with fans worldwide. Stay tuned for the latest from the world of cricket, brought to you by Zartash.
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