Synopsis: KKR batters perform hara-kiri as two big run outs ft Cameron Green and Angkrish Raghuvanshi seal fate of their match against Sunrisers
Kolkata Knight Riders, coming in from the cold after a thrashing in the hands of the Mumbai Indians at Wankhede, hoped to find some semblance of victory’s warmth at the Eden Gardens. But after a humbling at the hands of the Sunrisers Hyderabad by 65 runs on Thursday, KKR were left with more questions than answers. With their decent batting lineup failing to fire, except Angkrish Raghuvanshi’s half-century, two run-outs involving the youngster led to chaos and summed up their struggles.
KKR batters implode
Overhauling 226 was going to be a tall ask with Kolkata needing an explosive start that mirrored Hyderabad’s beginning. With a less-than-ideal bowling lineup at SRH’s disposal, Finn Allen went into beast mode straightaway, slamming David Payne for 25 runs in the first over. However, Harsh Dubey slammed the brakes, taking out the New Zealander in the next over.
SRH skipper Ishan Kishan persisted with spin, curiously bringing Abhishek Sharma into the proceedings in just the 3rd over, laying bare Hyderabad’s bowling depth’s frailties. He ended up conceding 15 as Raghuvanshi, in at No. 3, mined him for 2 sixes.
KKR reached a quick-fire 50 in the 4th over as Raghuvanshi kept going hard, slamming 2 boundaries off the 5th by Jaydev Unadkat but the SRH bowler had the last laugh, sending back KKR skipper Ajinkya Rahane for just 8 runs. New man Cameron Green departed in the very next over for just 2 runs after a horrible mix-up with Raghuvanshi as SRH wrested the momentum back, leaving KKR at 74/3 after the powerplay.
Sunrisers Hyderabad players look at the screen during Match 6 of the TATA Indian Premier League 2026. (Photo by Sumeet Parmar / CREIMAS for IPL)
Raghuvanshi did not have much time to dwell on the miscommunication with KKR’s chase placed precariously on his and Rinku Singh’s shoulders. The 21-year-old kept his head down and motored along, bringing up his fifty off 27 balls, breathing a bit of life in the innings as Kolata brought up their 100 in the 10th over.
Raghuvanshi, however, was in the middle of another mix-up with Rinku and lost his wicket, with the senior partner displeased with the lack of communication. Rinku wouldn’t last long either, edging to Unadkat off Nitish Reddy as KKR’s hopes quickly faded.
Story continues below this ad
KKR’s only Blessing
The toss at Eden Gardens presented a dilemma for both teams due to their relatively weak bowling attacks, which failed to defend 200+ scores in their opening matches. Even if they did bat first, would their respective bowling lineups be able to box in the opposition in the second act? Rahane eventually went with the tried and tested decision of choosing to chase.
The decision looked to have backfired immediately with Travis Head grabbing a hat-trick of boundaries inside the first couple of overs while Abhishek chipped in with a six. The Australian kept up his aggression, slamming two sixes and two fours off the third over bowled by Vaibhav Arora which forced Rahane to bring in Sunil Narine and Varun Chakaravarthy within the powerplay. While the West Indies allrounder yielded just 3, Varun’s rough patch continued with Abhishek mining him for 25 runs, courtesy of two sixes and three fours. Tyagi ultimately sent back Head for 46 off 21 but SRH had their tails up, reaching 84/1 in the powerplay.
Abhishek continued his merry way, not even sparing the economical Narine, taking a four and a six as SRH posted their 100 in just the 8th over, with captain Ishan Kishan also joining the party with some cracking hits before holing out to Rinku for 14 off Blessing Muzarabani. The lanky Zimbabwean struck once again in the same over, sending Abhishek back for 48 as KKR found a way back into the match.
Blessing Muzarabani of Kolkata Knight Riders celebrates the wicket of Shivang Kumar of Sunrisers Hyderabad. (Photo by Sumeet Parmar / CREIMAS for IPL)
Anukul was the next to strike, snapping up Aniket Verma for 1 as Hyderabad’s momentum came to a screeching halt after the explosive start. With the KKR spinners finding more of a say as the match wore on, SRH went boundary-less for almost three straight overs before Nitish managed to squeak one in. KKR, however, failed to take advantage of the quick wickets, leading to Heinrich Klaasen and Nitish stitching an 82-run fifth-wicket partnership. By the time Vaibhav sent Nitish back for 39 in the 19th, SRH had already touched 200.
Story continues below this ad
Klaasen ended up completing his 50 in the last over but was snapped by Muzarabani for his third wicket of the night before the seamer completed a 4-wicket haul, impressing on his home debut. But it was only a silver lining at the end of another thrashing.
Brief scores: SRH 226/8 (Heinrich Klaasen 52, Abhishek Sharma 48, Travis 46, Blessing Muzarabani 4/41) beat KKR 161 in 16 overs (Angkrish Raghuvanshi 52, Jaydev Unadkat 3/21) by 65 runs
