RCB spinners choke Knights for 82-run win in Sharjah
Dubai: Royal Challengers Bangalore spinners choked Kolkata Knight Riders to register a comprehensive 82-run win at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium today. After AB de Villiers and Virat Kohli propelled them to a steep 194 for two, Washington Sundar (2/20) and Yuzvendra Chahal (1/12) saw to it that the KKR chase never got off the ground and it became a one-sided affair.
A 100-run partnership between De Villiers and Kohli – of which 81 was plundered off the final five overs – took RCB to an imposing total on a sluggish wicket. The South African took the role of the aggressor with a blazing 73 off 33 balls, which included five boundaries and six sixes down the ground, while Kohli complemented him with 33 off 28 balls. The partnership saw the pair complete 3000 IPL runs with today’s partnership.
Shubhman Gill topscored with 34 off 25 balls, a reflection of KKR’s batting effort today as they finished at 112 for nine.
RCB heap 82-run defeat on Knights
Relive the match as it happened...
Half-time report: AB, Kohli may have put it beyond the Knights’ reach
Dubai: A 100-run partnership between AB de Villiers, cricket’s Mr 360 degrees, and Virat Kohli – of which 81 was plundered off the final five overs – took Royal Challengers Bangalore to an imposing 194 for the loss of two wickets against Kolkata Knight Riders at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium today. The South African took the role of the aggressor with a blazing 73 off 33 balls, which included five boundaries and six sixes down the ground, while Kohli complemented him with 33 off 28 balls.
The partnership saw the pair complete 3000 IPL runs with today’s partnership coming on a sluggish Sharjah wicket. They undid all the initial good work by the KKR bowlers.
It will be not an easy task for the KKR batsmen today – though they have the firepower in newcomer Tom Banton, Eoin Morgan and Andre Russell.