Kolkata Bedevilled By Delhi Seamers

Kolkata Bedevilled By Delhi Seamers

Irfan Pathan removed both Kolkata openers in the first over of their run chase.

©REUTERS/Philip Brown. Picture Supplied by Action Images

Delhi Daredevils 160-8 (Chand 40, Narine 3-21) beat
Kolkata Knight Riders 108-7 (Yadav 2-13) by 52 runs
CLT20, Group A Match, Centurion

Irfan Pathan removed both Kolkata Knight Riders openers in his first over and the reigning IPL champions never recovered, stuttering to 108 for seven after their 20 overs to lose by 52 runs in Centurion.

Pathan found enough swing to induce Kolkata captain Gautam Gambhir to chip to Kevin Pietersen at mid-on third ball and then trapped Manvinder Bisla plumb in front from the final ball of the first over. His fellow opening bowler, Morne Morkel, then came to the fore by having Brendon McCullum caught at point and followed that up by hitting his South African team-mate Jacques Kallis on the finger, forcing him to retire hurt and head to the hospital for an x-ray.

At this stage, the score read four for three, effectively four, and Kolkata were always going to find it difficult to recover, especially against the swing of Pathan and the increasingly uneven bounce from the pitch. Manoj Tiwary tried his best and made 33 off 38 balls, sharing a fifth-wicket stand of 47 with Rajat Bhatia (26 off 37), but the required run rate was spiralling and both perished.

Earlier, Sunil Narine had pegged Delhi Daredevils back after they had threatened to reach in excess of 170. Ross Taylor and Unmukt Chand had taken 30 runs off one L Balaji over, with Balaji then conceding a further 13 from the final over of the innings to end with the uninspiring figures of two for 61 from four overs.

Taylor favoured the leg-side throughout his innings as is his wont and was finally out for 36 off 24 balls, while Chand showed just why so many people are talking about him as India’s next batting superstar. He began his innings with one of the most aesthetically pleasing cover drives that you will ever see following the dismissal of Virender Sehwag (22 off 17 balls) and continued to time the ball sublimely throughout his innings.

His dismissal to Narine in the 18th over of the innings let Kolkata back in, perhaps showing his inexperience, perhaps showing Narine’s class, but 40 off 27 balls proved to be the highest score of the match – no mean feat for a 19 year-old playing in a game featuring no fewer than nine current international batsmen.

© Cricket World 2012