DD vs KKR IPL 2018 Match Report: Skipper Shreyas Iyer leads Daredevils to victory, change of fortune

The Delhi Daredevils (DD) on Friday defeated the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) by 55 runs in their Indian Premier League (IPL) match at the Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium in Delhi.

It was also Delhi’s largest win over Kolkata in the IPL and one of the largest across the tournament’s history, in terms of the margin.

The victory also gave a winning start to Shreyas Iyer's tenure as the captain and a fillip to the Daredevils' IPL campaign. The side is currently struggling in the lower half of the table.

Glenn Maxwell delivered the first blow to the Knight Riders by picking Chris Lynn’s wicket. Trent Boult, who now has the Purple Cap, scalped Sunil Narine and Robin Boult to help DD tighten their control over the match.

Andre Russell’s 44 runs of 30 balls and Shubman Gill’s 37 runs off 29 balls helped the Knight Riders provide some resistance.

However, some effective bowling form Amit Mishra and Avesh Khan helped the hosts curtail the late attack by KKR.

Earlier in the first inning, young Prithvi Shaw opened with 62 (44) and guided the Daredevils along with Colin Munro’s useful contribution of 33 (18) upfront.

Skipper Shreyas Iyer continued his onslaught along with a cameo from Glenn Maxwell to take the hosts to 219/4.

Dinesh Karthik had won the toss and had opted to bowl first, citing the due factor.

Catch all the highlights from the match here.

Shreyas Iyer, leading from the front scored an unbeaten 93 off 40 balls that took the match away from the Knight Riders. The new Daredevils captain was successful in capitalising the final overs of the first inning. The last over by Shivam Mavi went for 29 runs, making it the most expensive over in this year’s IPL.

Boult bowled a short ball on the leg stump. Even though he was cramped for space, Robin Uthappa hit the ball anyway. It came off the bat's top half and went straight to Shaw at mid-wicket. Uthappa’s wicket was second in the inning and ended up unsettling the Knight Riders.

Iyer, who was named Gautam Gambhir’s successor on Wednesday, led from the front. Iyer was also able to switch gears when required. The skipper hit three fours and 10 sixes during the inning.

While Trent Boult picked the two crucial wickets at the top and regained the Purple Cap, it was Amit Mishra’s bowling that broke KKR’s resistance. Bowling at an economy of 5.75, Mishra picked two wicket including that of Dinesh Karthik, who could have been dangerous at a later stage in the inning. Mishra gave away just two fours during his spell and bowled a total of 10 dot balls that helped build pressure on the visitors.

Catch the full scorecard here.

Shreyas Iyer (DD captain), “A great feeling, especially when you are leading for the first time. All of us contributed, not only me. It was a really nice toss to lose because we were going to bowl first. Batting gave us freedom to express ourselves. The last 90 was while chasing while this was while batting first but both were satisfying. Shaw's been batting well since the start of the season and the way he is playing is magnificent. Colin Munro, along with him gave us a fifty-run partnership. Plunkett, he is the go-to guy in the bowling line-up, and the way he came to me and said he would want to bowl the 16th or 17th over, that is good to see from a senior like him.”

Dinesh Karthik (KKR captain), “It was a big target. If the dew came, it may have been easier. But no dew came and they batted much better than us. When Russell bats, it always gives us hope. But he is a human and we need to raise our hands and say we did not play well today. The spinners did okay today, actually. We need to raise our fielding standards. We did not field well and that should turn things around for us.”

Daredevils now will take on the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Pune on April 30. The Knight Riders will play their next fixture against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in Bangalore on April 29. Both matches will start at 8:00 IST.

As result of the win, the Daredevils moved one position up on the points table and are no more last. The Knight Riders, who were at number four, missed an opportunity to move up with a possibility of topping the table.

Despite the win, the Daredevils still have a long way to go. They still need to win six out of their seven remaining matches to reach the playoffs.