Fortune favours the brave, and it was Gautam Gambhir’s side that fortune sided with as the visting Kolkata Knight Riders put an end to their four-game losing streak with an eight-wicket win over Delhi Daredevils.
Going by Kolkata’s recent run-chasing exploits, the target of 161 seemed a good total on a pitch that showed signs of uneven bounce.
That was until Gambhir (69) and Robin Uthappa (47) took control within the first ten overs. Having witnessed Dinesh Karthik and JP Duminy pull Delhi out of a tricky 61 for 3 at one stage, the Kolkata openers began on a confident note, and kept it simple.
Of the two, Uthappa looked far more set as he smashed four boundaries and a six with confidence en route to his 34-ball 47. Gambhir, at the other end, was a picture of resilience more than fluency. The left-hander’s shot selection could be questioned but on the day nothing was going to go against him.
Even after Uthappa’s dismissal in the 12th over by Wayne Parnell with the score on 106, Gambhir, who was dropped on 18 when Karthik put down an absolute sitter behind the stumps, continued with his fiery ways and carried Kolkata to 151 for 2 before falling to a stunning catch by Karthik after scoring 69 from 56 balls.
It was then down Jacques Kallis and Manish Pandey to do the needful and they did just that as Kolkata reached 161 for 2 with ten balls to spare.
Roshan Thyagarajan is correspondent at Wisden India. For more on IPL, visit wisdenindia.com or their Twitter account @wisdenindia
