IPL 2015 SRH v KKR Highlights: Uthappa, Russell Heroics in Vain as Kolkata Lose Rain-Curtailed Tie vs Hyderabad
Sunrisers Hyderabad defeated Kolkata Knight Riders by 16 runs (D/L) after David Warner and Shikhar Dhawan smashed fifties to set up a competitive total. Catch highlights here:
Kolkata Knight Riders were given a revised target of 118 runs in 12 overs after heavy showers lashed Vizag. After Warner and Dhawan's heroics with the bat, the bowlers stepped up to deny the defending champions victory in a tense chase (SCORECARD | STANDINGS | STATISTICS)
20:30 IST: Brilliant stuff from Bhui - he finished with 1/24 from his three overs and helped the Sunrisers beat KKR by 16 runs (D/L) for their second win of the season.
20:26 IST: WICKET! Bhuvi Kumar comes back to bowl the last over and removes Yusuf Pathan. It's all over for the Knight Riders.
20:18 IST: Brilliant over by Bhuvi Kumar - gives away only five runs in the 10th, leaving KKR with 32 to score off the last two overs.
20:12 IST: WICKET! Another one bites the dust for KKR. Russell falls to Bopara for 10-ball 19 and the Knight Riders need 38 off 19 to win against SRH.
20:11 IST: FOUR! Russell really is tuning the heat on Hyderabad - he smashes Bopara for 4. KKR need 38 off 20 balls.
20:09 IST: Andre Russell is on fire again tonight - he has clobbered Bipul Sharma for two successive sixes and the pressure is back on the Sunirsers. KKR need 44 off 4 overs to upstage SRH in this rain-curtailed event.
19:59 IST: WICKET! Uthappa falls to Moises Henriques for a 21-ball 34. This could get tricky for the Knight Riders, who now need 69 off 37 balls to beat Hyderabad.
19:54 IST: Manish Pandey in the middle with Robin Uthappa, who has looked dangerous today. Kolkata need 78 in 7 overs with nine wickets in hand. Can SRH rally here?
19:49 IST: WICKET! Gambhir falls to Praveen Kumar for 4 and that's a massive blow for the Knight Riders. They are 35/1 at the end of 4 overs, the revised powerplay and need 83 from the remaining 8 overs.
19:46 IST: SIX! Boom... Uthappa's wide blade is taking the SRH attack to the cleaners. And he follows it up with FOUR as Praveen Kumar feels the heat in his first over.
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19:42 IST: SIX! Uthappa makes Steyn pay there. Picks it off his pads and flicks that over the ropes. Sensational shot as KKR reach 22/0 in 2.2 overs chasing 118 (12).
19:31 IST: DROPPED! Could that be costly for the Sunrisers. Uthappa edged a lifting delivery from Steyn to the slip cordon - the ball was headed comfortably to Dhawan but Rahul thought it was his catch and made a mess of it.
19:27 IST: KKR have a revised target: 118 runs needed in 12 overs. There will be a fielding restriction of four overs. Two bowlers can bowl a maximum of three overs.
19:21 IST: The covers are coming off. The umpires are back in the middle but it is still not clear when the match would resume. Meanwhile, there could be a threat of rain in Bangalore as well, where RCB take on CSK.
19:11 IST: There will be another inspection at 19.20 IST. Warner did come on the field with a few of his players and looked keen to just get on with it. But the officials would have the final say.
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18:59 IST: The Sunrisers are out on the field practicing on the field. Looks like play could start soon but there has been no official confirmation yet.
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18:44 IST: The skies have cleared in Vizag and there was a huge cheer around the ground. By the way, a run has been deducted from SRH's total - the run taken off the no-ball in the last over bowled by Umesh Yadav won't be taken into account as the catch was taken. The original target is now 177, not 178. But with the deduction in over, there will be a revised target now.
#KKR target in 5 overs: 58 runs 10 overs: 102 runs 15 overs: 141 runs #SRHvsKKR #IPL
- Mohandas Menon (@mohanstatsman) April 22, 2015
18:32 IST: Stop-start showers in Vizag continue to frustrate. Steady downpour now and it looks like overs would be cut off from now on.
We will start losing overs after 1825 IST...which is now. The rain has set in. Looking grim. #KKR v #SRH
- Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) April 22, 2015
18:20 IST: Latest from Vizag - the rain has stopped but the ground is still under covers. The super-soppers are in operation at the moment.
18:01 IST: Rain has often played spoilsport in the IPL but both teams would be hoping for play to begin soon. 178 is the kind of target KKR would back themselves to chase down while SRH with their strong bowling line-up should be confident of defending it.
17:52 IST: Light drizzle delays Kolkata's chase of 178 vs Hyderabad in Vizag. The ground has been covered.
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17:39 IST: Sunrisers Hyderabad finish with 177/4. That's at least 20 runs less than what they would have looked at after being 80/0 in 10 overs. KKR have an in-form batting line-up and it should be an interesting chase against Dale Steyn & Co.
17:31 IST: SIX! Length ball from Umesh Yadav and Naman Ojha hammers it into the stands but then the KKR seamer bounces back with a cracking yorker. Naman Ojha bowled for 18. SRH 170/4 in 19.2 overs.
17:27 IST: WICKET! That's the end of Shikhar Dhawan; fall to Andre Russell for a 46-ball 54 and Hyderabad are 162/3 with nine deliveries left in their innings. The Knight Riders have fought back well.
17:24 IST: Fifty for Dhawan! It's his 20th in the IPL and has taken 43 balls to come. Sunrisers Hyderabad are 158/2 in 18 overs vs the Kolkata Knight Riders.
17:22 IST: Naman Ojha has come out all guns blazing for SRH - he smashed Morkel for a boundary and then lifted Umesh for a six. These are very useful runs against a top-drawer batting line-up.
17:16 IST: WICKET! Morkel strikes again to remove the dangerous Ravi Bopara for 2. His half-hearted drive was easily taken by Botha at short cover. Morkel is catching up on the Purple Cap, which is currently held by his country man Imran Tahir.
17:14 IST: FOUR! Dhawan reverse sweeps Narine and closes in on another half-century. After Warner perished, Dhawan has taken it upon himself to accelerate the scoring. By the way there is a threat of rain looming large.
17:06 IST: WICKET! Gone, Warner's gone for 91. He has fallen short of a well-deserved third hundred. But Hyderabad are well poised for a late assault on 130/1 off 14.2 overs.
17:04 IST: Warner has been brutal on the Knight Riders attack today; he has paid no heed to reputation - be it Botha, Morkel, Umesh or Narine - the SRH skipper is 14 short of his third hundred and his team is well-placed at 126/0 in 14 overs.
16:56 IST: Warner is dealing in boundaries at the moment. Hyderabad are on course for a massive total. Warner did say he wanted to bat anyway and you now see why. SRH 117/0 with seven overs left in their innings.
16:51 IST: SIX! Warner clobbers Piyush Chawla into the stands and Hyderabad are 106/0 in 11.4 overs. Kolkata are for sure looking at a huge chase. This could be a cracker of a game. If Kolkata have a star-studded line-up of batsmen. Hyderabad have some serious pace in their armory.
16:43 IST: SIX! Warner hammers Umesh Yadav for a SIX and gets to his 19th fifty off just 36 balls vs KKR. This is a very, very good start for hosts against a top-quality bowling attack.
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16:38 IST: Simple tactics from the Sunrisers. David Warner has been the aggressor while Shikhar Dhawan has been steady as a rock. Dhawan will of course cut lose sooner rather than later; he has been in splendid form. SRH 67/0 in 9 overs.
16:35 IST: SIX! Warner takes Yusuf Pathan on and moves into the 40s. The Sunrisers are steadily moving into a space where they would look to explode soon. KKR under severe pressure for sure. But they have the bowlers to bounce back.
16:29 IST: Botha, Narine and Yusuf. Gambhir has thrown three of his spinners at the SRH openers within the first seven overs of their innings. But Warner has been a step ahead of the Knight Riders and led SRH's charge well; 50/0 in quick time.
16:22 IST: Sunil Narine produced turn and bounce immediately on being introduced to the attack. Six runs come off his first over but David Warner is settling down for a nice, long innings. And it's no secret what can happen if he hangs around for too long in any format of the game.
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16:18 IST: David Warner is looking increasingly dangerous for the Sunrisers; he has taken after Morne Morkel and shown scant respect for one of the most potent fast bowlers in the world. SRH 30/0 in 4 overs.
16:11 IST: Warner, Dhawan solid against KKR's all Proteas new-ball attack. Hyderabad are 20/0 in three overs after having been asked to bat by Gautam Gambhir in Vizag.
16:08 IST: Eight runs off Morkel's first over - Warner even hits the first boundary of the SRH innings. Morkel bowled back of the length and Warner was quick to latch on to it. SRH 11/0 in 2 overs vs KKR
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16:04 IST: Johan Botha opens the bowling for the Knight Riders and it's a good first over. Just three runs off it. Sunrisers Hyderabad are 3/0 off 1 over.
15:55 IST: David Warner wanted to bat first anyway and Gambhir wanted to field. So the toss has not really made much of a difference. The Knight Riders have been chasing really well with Gambhir in red-hot form. The KKR skipper has struck three fifties so far in this tournament.
15:45 IST: Playing XIs:
Sunrisers Hyderabad: DA Warner (Captain), S Dhawan, KL Rahul, NV Ojha (WK), RS Bopara, MC Henriques, KV Sharma, Bipul Sharma, P Kumar, B Kumar, DW Steyn
Kolkata Knight Riders: RV Uthappa (WK), G Gambhir (Captain), MK Pandey, SA Yadav, YK Pathan, AD Russell, J Botha, PP Chawla, SP Narine, M Morkel, UT Yadav
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15:35 IST: Kolkata won the toss and elected to bowl vs Hyderabad in Vizag. KKR have replaced ten Doeschate with South African off-spinner Johan Botha. For SRH, Moises Henriques is in for Eoin Morgan.
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Kolkata Knight Riders methodical approach in all their games so far reflect the mood in the defending champions camp. Gautam Gambhir's ability to adjust and let the team play around him has helped matters. The win against Delhi Daredevils was testimony.
Sunrisers are yet to rise to the levels expected. With one win from four matches, the team has not done justice to the talent available in the side. David Warner and Shikhar Dhawan must show the way forward and inspire the Indian kids to come to the party. The who's who of world bowling is at Hyderabad's disposal, but where is the impact?
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Kolkata are a happy bunch. Yusuf Pathan's coming to form is good news, but KKR's biggest strength is their bowling unit that has tied down teams to modest totals. Umesh Yadav and Morne Morkel have played the lead roles and Sunil Narine's inability to spin mystery has been made good by 'centurion' wicket-taker Piyush Chawla.
In spite of their three wins from four matches, no KKR player is heading the bowling or batting charts. Flashy performances can win you an odd game. KKR are perhaps looking at the bigger picture with clever cricket.