Venkatesh and Starc Shine as KKR Break 12-Year Wankhede Jinx with Victory over Mumbai
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) triumphed over Mumbai Indians (MI), thanks to stellar performances by Venkatesh Iyer and Mitchell Starc.
MI’s aspirations were dashed by an outstanding bowling performance from KKR, who needed just 51 runs from the final five overs.
Mumbai Indians 145 (Suryakumar 56, Starc 4-33) lost to Kolkata Knight Riders 169 (Venkatesh 70, Pandey 42, Bumrah 3-18) by a margin of 24 runs.
Kolkata Knight Riders cemented their position near the top of the IPL standings, but Mumbai Indians’ chances of making it to the last four were severely damaged.
The franchise brain trust will need to investigate how MI lost a match in which they took five wickets against KKR in the first 37 overs. In essence, however, MI did not go for the kill at 43 for 4, then 57 for 5, when they had KKR on the ropes. And even though MI’s Bumrah skillfully ended the innings, the fact that they gave KKR a chance to rally with an 83-run partnership between Venkatesh Iyer and Manish Pandey would ultimately come back to haunt them.
As has been the case all season, their own top order was disorganized. Suryakumar Yadav’s strong innings, however, allowed MI to remain optimistic despite the loss. Those expectations were dashed, though, when MI was dismissed for 145 in the 19th over thanks to Mitchell Starc.
Bumrah is MI’s unwavering talisman, even though they are still stinking up the IPL despite him finishing with 3 for 18 off 3.5 overs tonight. Even though KKR was having trouble in the first seven overs, Hardik did not call back his finest bowler despite giving up just two runs in his opening over.
After that, Bumrah had one brief middle over, during which Pandey smashed him for a four and a six.
But in the final over, he was brilliant, taking two wickets and giving up just two runs off the 18th over. He then hemmed Venkatesh in and got him out on the fifth ball of the final over, after the batsman attempted to scoop him over the shoulder but missed and was bowled out by his middle stump. Just two runs had come off of the previous four deliveries for him.
Although MI’s chances of making the playoffs seem bleak, Bumrah retains the purple cap.
Prior to Starc unleashing his ball-handling wizardry, KKR required a means of defense. And the cornerstone of KKR’s innings was Venkatesh’s 70 off 52. He was fast off the bat, striking two fours in his first four deliveries, then calmed down a bit as wickets came at the other end. To their great credit, nevertheless, KKR’s run rate did not significantly decline in spite of the dismissals. After five overs, they were 51 for 4, and after ten overs, they were 83 for 5, reaching triple figures in the twelfth over of the innings.
This has been made possible, in large part, by Pandey and Venkatesh, who continued to look for boundary possibilities rather than delving too deeply into accumulation mode. Iyer remained till the 20th over and was the last to be out off the penultimate ball, but Pandey was out for 42 off 31 in the 17th over. The most memorable of his three sixes came off the back away and smash over long off of Hardik Pandya’s bowling.
Bumrah is MI’s unwavering talisman, even though they are still stinking up the IPL despite him finishing with 3 for 18 off 3.5 overs tonight. Even though KKR was having trouble in the first seven overs, Hardik did not call back his finest bowler despite giving up just two runs in his opening over.
After that, Bumrah had one brief middle over, during which Pandey smashed him for a four and a six.
But in the final over, he was brilliant, taking two wickets and giving up just two runs off the 18th over. He then hemmed Venkatesh in and got him out on the fifth ball of the final over, after the batsman attempted to scoop him over the shoulder but missed and was bowled out by his middle stump. Just two runs had come off of the previous four deliveries for him.
Although MI’s chances of making the playoffs seem bleak, Bumrah retains the purple cap.
Also Read: KKR Clinches Second IPL Title With Record Breaking Victory Over KXIP In IPL 2014
Impact Sub Manish Pandey Grabbed His Opportunity
After getting in at number seven, Manish Pandey hit 42 in 31 balls to help KKR reach a total that they successfully defended.
Manish Pandey finally had his turn to speak out for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the IPL 2024 on Friday. He has been waiting for this occasion.
After being summoned to bat, KKR’s top order collapsed, so he went out as an impact player and scored a 31-ball 42. That may not sound like much in an IPL as high scoring as this one, but it was crucial to KKR’s victory over Mumbai Indians (MI) that evening at the Wankhede, as they defeated MI by 24 runs.
After KKR was struggling at 57 for 5, Pandey left the field at number seven. Venkatesh Iyer, who top-scored for KKR with a 52-ball 70, and he put up an 83-run stand that helped KKR reach 169 before bowling MI out for 145.
KKR captain Shreyas Iyer commented on the official broadcast following the victory, “Certainly this impact-player rule it has specifically helped us in this game, and Manish, he’s been eyeing an opportunity right from game one but today he got one and he capitalised on it.” We reached a respectable total, and it was great to watch him go out there and essentially build on the connection with Venky, who has been outstanding on this wicket. I told the players that we could protect our position with our bowling lineup if we were ahead, and that’s exactly what we did.”
Player of the Match Venkatesh stated that Pandey and himself needed to rebuild even though they weren’t scoring much in order to spare players like Andre Russell from death.
“This is the fourth or fifth time where Manish has padded up, but this time he eventually got to bat,” Venkatesh stated. Yes, that is, of course, the plan. By using the impact-player rule, a batter can be added to the score if they see a collapse.”
When asked whether it was sage to forfeit the impact-player option during the opening quarter of the match, Venkatesh responded, “It was very important at that time.” Given that Ramandeep Singh and Russell were in a non-playing role, it was preferable for Manish to step in and pick up the pace. Plus, he performed admirably.
“At first, I told him he would need some time to get used to the wicket. The wicket was two-paced and the ball was holding up. I informed him that he is an experienced applicant and that we have a buffer of time. Throughout the innings, he was the one who gave me advice on how to approach the bowler, which bowler to attack, and when to be aggressive. Our communication was excellent.”
This was Venkatesh’s second half-century in the IPL 2024, and it surpassed his 30-ball fifty that he scored in KKR’s opening-round victory over Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB).
Regarding his strategy for the innings, Venkatesh stated, “I try to be a smarter cricketer.” “Everyone is capable, but only the intelligent can make those choices.
“Since Wankhede is known as a six-hitting ground, it would be very easy for me to go after someone like Piyush Chawla or maybe fast bowlers, just hit them.” However, I’m quite grateful that the team needed me to stay until the very end.”
