KOLKATA: A scintillating performance by the bowlers helped Kolkata Knight riders triumph over Sunrisers Hyderabad, who came looking to avenge their loss in last season’s final. Despite having a strong lineup of big hitters, Sunrisers struggled and fell 80 runs short while chasing the 201-run target. The visitors were bowled out for 120 in 16.4 overs. South African wicketkeeper-batter Heinrich Klaasen was the top scorer for the Orange Army, scoring 33 runs off 21 balls.

While chasing 201, Sunrisers' top-order batters failed to deliver. Travis Head (4 off 2), Abhishek Sharma (2 off 6), and Ishan Kishan (2 off 5) were back in the pavilion within the first two overs. As wickets kept tumbling, contributions from Nitish Kumar Reddy (19 off 15), Kamindu Mendis (27 off 20), and Heinrich Klaasen (33 off 21) weren’t enough to save the team from defeat. The remaining batters—Aniketh Verma (6 off 6), Pat Cummins (14 off 15), Harshal Patel (3 off 5), and Mohammed Shami (2* off 4)—couldn’t make a significant impact, while Simarjeet Singh was dismissed for a duck.

Pacer Vaibhav Arora and leg spinner Varun Chakravarthy dismantled Hyderabad’s batting lineup by taking three wickets each. Andre Russell claimed two wickets, while Harshit Rana and Sunil Narine each picked up one wicket. With this victory, Kolkata moved up to the fifth position in the points table with four points from four matches. Before this match, the defending champions were at the bottom of the table.

Batting first, Kolkata posted a total of 200/6 in 20 overs, powered by half-centuries from young talent Ankrish Raghuvanshi and Venkatesh Iyer. Opener Quinton de Kock was dismissed early, scoring just 1 off 6 balls. He was caught by Sishan Ansari off Pat Cummins’s delivery when the team’s total was at 14. Sunil Narine, continuing his poor batting form, was dismissed for 7 off 7 balls, caught by Heinrich Klaasen off Mohammed Shami.

Captain Ajinkya Rahane (38 off 27) and Ankrish Raghuvanshi (50 off 32) steadied the innings after the initial setbacks, putting together an 81-run partnership for the third wicket. Venkatesh Iyer, who came in at number five, played a blistering knock of 60 runs off 29 balls, hitting seven fours and three sixes. Rinku Singh remained unbeaten with 32 off 17 balls, while Andre Russell was run out on the last ball for 1 off 2. For Hyderabad, Mohammed Shami, Pat Cummins, Sishan Ansari, Harshal Patel, and Kamindu Mendis took one wicket each.