Kolkata Knight Riders lose again, Hyderabad shine with big score

KOLKATA: Former champions Kolkata Knight Riders suffered their second consecutive defeat in the IPL season, losing to Sunrisers Hyderabad by 65 runs. Chasing a target of 227, Kolkata were bowled out for 161 in 16 overs. Young wicketkeeper-batter Angkrish Raghuvanshi (52 runs off 29 balls) was the only standout performer, scoring a half-century.

Kolkata got off to a strong start with Finn Allen scoring 28 off just seven balls, but his early dismissal hurt the chase. Captain Ajinkya Rahane and Cameron Green were dismissed cheaply. Rinku Singh added 35 runs, but the rest of the batting line-up failed to deliver. For Hyderabad, Jaydev Unadkat took three wickets, while Eshan Malinga and Nitish Kumar Reddy bagged two wickets each. Harsh Dubey got 1 wicket.

Earlier, Hyderabad posted a huge total of 226 for 8 in 20 overs. Openers Travis Head (46 runs off 21 balls) and Abhishek Sharma (48 runs off 21 balls) gave a solid start. Heinrich Klaasen (52 runs off 35 balls) top-scored with a quick half-century, while Nitish Kumar Reddy (39 off 24) contributed valuable runs in the middle order.