Andre Russell (64* off 25) went berserk at the death only to be matched by Heinrich Klassen (63 off 29) in Sunrisers Hyderabad’s 209-run chase but eventually it was Harshit Rana who defended 7 off the last 5 balls to help Kolkata Knight Riders clinch the final-ball thriller at the Eden Gardens by four runs.
Russell helped KKR loot 85 in the last five overs to post the first 200-plus score of IPL 2024. In the topsy-turvy chase, Klaasen’s pyrotechnics brought SRH’s equation down from an unlikely 60 off 18 to 13 off the final over before Harshit’s double whammy eventually consigned the visitors to a heartbreak.
He removed both the set batters in the space of four deliveries, with Suyash Sharma doing his bit with a good catch running behind to see the back of Klaasen. Cummins had to hit a four to take the game to the Super Over but failed to make contact, conceding the two points.
Harshit Rana blew a flying kiss to send Mayank Agarwal off earlier in the day. Many might call that as snooty and borderline crass, but perhaps it is that brash attitude which gives someone the self confidence to defend 13 runs in a final over against a charged up Heinrich Klaasen, after getting hit for six first up.
Brief scores: Kolkata Knight Riders 208/7 in 20 overs (Andre Russell 64*, Phil Salt 54; T Natarajan 3-32, Mayank Markande 2-39) beat Sunrisers Hyderabad 204/7 in 20 overs (Heinrich Klassen 63, , Harshit Rana 3-33, Andre Russell 2-25) by 4 runs
Heinrich Klaasen with 2️⃣ maximums 💥
With 4️⃣ overs to go, #SRH need plenty of these
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