PBKS vs KKR: Punjab Kings beat Kolkata by 7 runs in rain-interrupted match
Punjab Kings vs Kolkata Knight Rider: Batting first after losing the toss at their home ground, Punjab Kings scored 191 runs for five wickets in the stipulated 20 overs. In response, the Kolkata team was able to score 146 runs losing seven wickets in 16 overs. By this time, the Kolkata team was behind by seven runs under the Duckworth-Lewis method. For this reason, Kolkata had to face defeat by the same margin.
The second match of the 16th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) was played between Punjab Kings (PBKS) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). Punjab defeated Kolkata by 7 runs with the help of the Duckworth-Lewis method in this rain-curtailed match played at the IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali. With this win, Punjab, captained by Shikhar Dhawan, made a winning start to the tournament.
Batting first after losing the toss at their home ground, Punjab Kings scored 191 runs for five wickets in 20 overs. Bhanuka Rajapaksa scored 50 runs for Punjab while batting fast. Apart from him, captain Shikhar Dhawan 40, Sam Karan 26, Prabhsimran Singh 23 and Jitesh Sharma contributed 21 runs. Tim Southee took two wickets for Kolkata. Umesh Yadav, Sunil Narine and Varun Chakraborty got one wicket each.
Chasing the target, the Kolkata team scored 146 runs losing seven wickets in 16 overs. But then it started raining. Shardul Thakur was playing for Kolkata scoring eight runs in three balls and Sunil Narine scored seven runs in two balls. Kolkata needed 46 runs in 24 balls to win and it seemed that Sunil Narine would take Kolkata across the target. But the rain spoiled the whole game. By this time, the Kolkata team was behind by seven runs under the Duckworth-Lewis method. For this reason, Kolkata had to face defeat by the same margin.
Venkatesh Iyer, who came out to bat as an impact player for Kolkata, scored 34 runs in 28 balls, Andre Russell scored 35 runs in 19 balls and captain Nitish Rana scored 24 runs in 17 balls. For Punjab, Arshdeep Singh took a maximum of three, and Sam Karan, Sikandar Raza, Nathan Ellis and Rahul Chahar took one wicket each. Arshdeep was adjudged 'Player of the Match' for his brilliant performance.