KKR vs RR IPL 2018 Match Report: Kuldeep Yadav spins Kolkata to 6-wicket win

Kuldeep Yadav’s brilliant spell that saw him take a wicket in each of his four overs helped Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) beat Rajasthan Royals (RR) by 6 wickets in the 49^th match of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2018.

A dropped catch off the first ball, carnage in the next four overs as Rahul Tripathy (27) and Jos Buttler (39) added 59, and then the turnaround from Kolkata… Rajasthan’s innings, after put into bat, was nothing short of a swing with extremes. Andre Russell (2/35) broke the 63-run first wicket stand after which Kuldeep Yadav (4/20) cast his magic on the RR batsmen, who were also guilty of poor shot selection. Kuldeep bowled with superb control and every time he took a wicket, he made the batsman look foolish with his artistic bowling. As a result, from 63/0 at one stage, the visitors were bundled for a meagre 142. If not for Jaydev Unadkat’s 26 off 18 towards the end, Rajasthan would have been bowled out for an even lower total.

Find the full match scorecard here.

Even KKR began their chase on a flying note with Sunil Narine (21) hitting Krishnappa Gowtham for 21 runs in the first over. But Ben Stokes (3/15) was fired up to turn things around for his side as he dismissed Narine and Robin Uthappa in quick succession off short balls. Chris Lynn (45) batted according to the situation and didn’t opt for the big shots as the target wasn’t big enough. He got out in the 16th over but Dinesh Karthik (41*) was there till the end to take his side home. Andre Russell’s quickfire cameo of 20* off 8 meant that KKR reached the target with two overs to spare.

Catch all the highlights from the game here.

Turning Point

With Rajasthan off to a flier, it needed a special effort from someone to pull things back and Kuldeep Yadav did just that. His spell of 4/20 is the turning point of the match as it was the main reason behind the Rajasthan batting collapse.

Best Dismissal

To get the better of the in-form Jos Buttler, it required a special delivery and Kuldeep came up with just that. It wasn’t the leg-spinner or the googly rather he went for a cross-seamed medium pacer which sent back Buttler to the dugout. Kuldeep bowled a quicker medium pacer on the stumps and clearly Buttler was taken by surprise as he had opted to play the reverse sweep but because the ball came quickly than he anticipated, it lobbed up in the air and he was caught at short third man. It is the best dismissal of the match.

Batsman of the Match

For a composed innings of 41* off 31, Dinesh Karthik is the batsman of the match. The KKR skipper batted responsibly and paced his innings well with some good looking shots and superb running between the wickets. He played the sheet anchor’s role to perfection and saw his side home.

Bowler of the Match

Kuldeep Yadav is the bowler of the match. Spinning a web around the RR batsmen, he bowled with exceptional control and displayed all the tricks under his hat. His googly was hardly picked by any Rajasthan batsman.

Captain’s views

Ajinkya Rahane (RR Captain): I think the intent was positive. When I went in, I wanted to carry on the momentum. It's not all up to Jos. All batsmen should take responsibility. Jaydev showed if you applied yourself, you can get runs. We had runs on the board and it was important to pick up wickets. I felt on this wicket that 170-180 would have been decent. We still have a chance of qualification. It's about learning from this game and moving forward. We'll miss Jos and Stokesy. I'm really happy for Jos getting the Test call up. We will miss them.

Dinesh Karthik (KKR Captain):  I think RR started off brilliantly. The fightback shows our character. Once we got a chance, we didn't let them get back into it. It's about keeping the energy levels up. Kuldeep is an international quality cricketer. As a captain, I have to make sure he's in the right mind space. He works really hard, and you can see the results. Qualification is in our hands, but that's a scary thing!

What’s next

Rajasthan return home to host Royal Challengers Bangalore at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur. On the other hand, KKR lock horns with Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad. Both matches will take place on Saturday.

Points Table

The positions haven’t changed for both teams after this match. With this win, KKR now have 14 points and are still at third place whereas Rajasthan remain at the fourth spot with 12 points.

Check out the updated points table here.