Russell applies muscle power in KKR victory against Punjab Kings

Mumbai, April 1: Andre Russell’s muscles helped Kolkata Knight Riders rout Punjab Kings by 6 wickets with the help of his power-punched unbeaten knock of 70 off 31 balls in the 8th match of Tata IPL at Wankhede Stadium here on Friday. Russell made a mockery of the precarious situation of 51 for 4 after he spanked 8 towering sixes and 2 boundaries. The blitzkrieg was such that Kolkata KRs were home with 33 balls to spare. The mighty West Indian absolutely thwarted the chase by swinging his arms and middling them all. Russell walked in when Kolkata KRs were in dire straits after Rahul Chahar bowled the seventh over, a double-wicket maiden, but after a cautious start, the West Indian flipped the cart. His partnership with Sam Billings (24 no off 23) was worth 90 in 7.3 overs. Kagiso Rabada took one early in his first over for Punjab, had Ajinkya Rahane (12) caught at short third man off nearly a wide ball. Venkatesh Iyer (3) hit Odean Smith (1 for 39) hard, but Harpreet Brar at cover-point latched on to the rebound to make it 38 for 2 in the fifth. Shreyas Iyer (26 off 15) tried the big slog-sweep in Chahar’s first over, and ended up skiing, reducing Kolkata to 51 for 3. Chahar then trapped Nitish Rana (0) right in front, a double-wicket maiden, a feat to celebrate in the middle. His wicket left the chase to Billings and Russell. In the game-breaking 12th over. Russell smacked 30 runs off Odean Smith, leaving Kolkata only 29 off 8 overs in a jiffy. Earlier, Umesh Yadav returned with 4/23 as Kolkata skittled out Punjab for 137. He was ably supported by Tim Southee who picked up two wickets. The Punjab batsmen could not stick around to take the innings deep as they tried to play aggressively, playing loose shots. If not for Kagiso Rabada’s cameo, Punjab’s score would have been more insulting. He smashed Southee 4, 4, 6, taking his side 120 for 8 in 17 overs. Umesh provided a perfect start as he scalped Punjab’s captain Mayank Agarwal plumb in the first over. Bahanuka Rajapaksa then revived Punjab with his quickfire 31. He dispatched three boundaries and as many sixes. The Sri Lankan did not stay long as Shivam Mavi got rid of him, while Tim Southee dismissed Shikhar Dhawan, reducing Punjab to 62 for three in the powerplay. Spinners Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy were also in great form. Liam Livingstone got a crucial 19 off 16, while Raj Angad Bawa could not impress in his second game. (UNI)