Punjab Kings (PBKS) pulled off a stunning 16-run win over Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on Tuesday after defending the lowest total in Indian Premier League history.
After being bowled out for just 111 in 15.3 overs at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur, Punjab stunned the visitors by dismissing them for 95 in 15.1 overs.
Marco Jansen struck in the opening over, removing Sunil Narine for 5, while Xavier Bartlett took out Quinton de Kock for 2. KKR were reduced to 7-2 early but rebuilt through a 55-run stand between Ajinkya Rahane and Impact Player Angkrish Raghuvanshi.
Kolkata were in control during a 55-run stand between Rahane and Angkrish Raghuvanshi but Chahal’s double strike in the middle overs turned the game. Kolkata collapsed from 72-3 to 79-8 in 23 balls.
Rahane was dismissed lbw by Chahal for 17 in the eighth over. He opted not to review, though replays later showed the ball had pitched outside off stump. Chahal then dismissed Raghuvanshi for 37 and ran through the middle order, removing Rinku Singh and Ramandeep Singh in quick succession.
Glenn Maxwell also contributed with the ball, trapping Venkatesh Iyer lbw. Jansen later returned to remove tailender Harshit Rana and ended Andre Russell’s resistance on 17, sealing the victory in dramatic fashion.
Arshdeep Singh also played a key role, bowling a wicket-maiden and dismissing Vaibhav Arora for a duck.
Yuzvendra Chahal led the bowling with figures of 4-28, while Marco Jansen claimed 3-17 to derail Kolkata’s chase.
Earlier, Punjab’s decision to bat first backfired despite a fiery start by openers Priyansh Arya (22) and Prabhsimran Singh (30), who took the score to 39/0 inside four overs.
Harshit Rana triggered the collapse with a double strike, including PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer for a duck.
Varun Chakravarthy (2-21) and Sunil Narine (2-14) dismantled the middle order, while MBKS crumbled from 54/1 to 111 all out. Shashank Singh (18) and Xavier Bartlett (11) provided some resistance, but the total looked well below par.
Despite the low score, PBKS held their nerve to pull off a dramatic upset. The win lifted them to fourth place on the table with eight points from six games.
KKR, who could have topped the table with a quick chase, slipped to sixth with six points from seven matches.
