The Independent Voice of West Indies Cricket

Andre Russell's 48* off 13 stuns RCB to keep them winless

Fri, Apr 5, '19

 

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Andre Russell produced fourth consecutive devastating innings, clubbing an unbeaten 13-ball 48 as Kolkata Knight Riders chased a steep total with five balls to spare. Chasing 206, Knight Riders needed 66 off 24 at one point, and then 53 off 18 with Russell having faced two balls.

From there, Royal Challengers Bangalore used four bowlers - Mohammed Siraj was suspended halfway through the 18th for a second beamer - all of whom were pumped to various corners of the ground by Russell who needed only eight scoring shots to score 46 of the 53 required.

It particularly soured the night for Royal Challengers captain Virat Kohli, whose 84 and a 108-run stand with AB de Villiers seemed to have set up a win they desperately needed, having come into the game with four consecutive losses. The result told a familiar story - a long-standing deficit of quality death bowling, even on a night where they had seven bowling options.

How Russell did it

Siraj had had a night to forget even before he was handed the ball for the 18th over. He had put down two catches - Chris Lynn and Nitish Rana's - and had bowled a beamer that was hit for six. With 53 required off 18, he started with two dot balls, fizzing past Russell's outside edge on both occasions. But just when he seemed to have redeemed himself, he bowled a bouncer that was called wide. From there, Royal Challengers lost control altogether.