Chasing 227 is never going to be easy in T20 cricket. While the chasing side has a great chance, especially in a tournament like the Indian Premier League (IPL), it is going to be all the more difficult when you lose top batters through unnecessary run-outs. That’s what happened at the Eden Gardens during Kolkata Knight Riders’ (KKR) run-chase against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on April 2 (Thursday).
The first to go was the most expensive player in IPL history – Cameron Green. Angkrish Raghuvanshi, who came into this match fresh off a fifty against Mumbai Indians (MI) – looked to smash the ball past the bowler. However, Eshan Malinga stuck a foot out and managed to stop the ball. He then retrieved the ball and hit the wickets at the non-striker’s end. With Green backing up way too much, he was in the middle of the pitch by then.
In the second incident, it was Rinku Singh, who was the culprit as he ran Raghuvanshi out at the non-striker’s end. Rinku smashed the ball on the off side and called for a run and Raghuvanshi responded right away. However, at a crucial juncture, he sent the batter back, but he could not reach the crease in time as Malinga threw the ball to the bowler, who knocked the bails off.
As a result, Raghuvanshi was dismissed for a well-compiled 52 off just 29 deliveries.
Both could have been avoided with better judgment, but as things stand, KKR are staring at yet another defeat.
Earlier, SRH, who were put in to bat, managed to put 226/8 on the board thanks to a brilliant fifty from Heinrich Klaasen (52) and valuable contributions from Abhishek Sharma (48) and Travis Head (46).
For more news & updates, follow The Crichub on X and YouTube
