Nitish Rana and Sunil Narine played knocks of 81 and 64 respectively as Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) posted a total of 194/6 in the allotted twenty overs against Delhi Capitals here at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Saturday.
Sent into bat first, KKR got off to a bad start as the side lost its opening batsman Shubman Gill (9) in the second over of the innings. He was sent back to the pavilion by Anrich Nortje as the pacer had him caught at the hands of Axar Patel.
Delhi bowlers kept on bowling tight line and length and as a result, KKR batsmen were unable to break free. Rahul Tripathi (13) and Dinesh Karthik (3) also lost their wickets cheaply and as a result, KKR was reduced to 42/3 in the eighth over. Tripathi was dismissed by Nortje while Karthik was sent back to the pavilion by Kagiso Rabada.
Sunil Narine was promoted to number five, ahead of skipper Eoin Morgan and the move paid off as he along with Nitish Rana added 115 runs for KKR. The partnership saw both batsmen going past their 50-run mark. Rabada provided the much-needed breakthrough to Delhi as he dismissed Narine (64) in the 17th over, reducing KKR to 157/4.
In the final three overs, KKR was able to score 33 runs more and as a result, the side posted a total of more than the 190-run mark.
At one stage, KKR was 44/2 after eight overs, but the side was able to score 150 runs off the final twelve overs.
For Delhi Capitals, Rabada and Nortje scalped two wickets each.
Brief Scores: Kolkata Knight Riders 194/6 (Nitish Rana 81, Sunil Narine 64, Anrich Nortje 2-27)
( With inputs from ANI )
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