One of the biggest sporting events, the Indian Premier League, kick-started in a grand manner today. The first match of the 18th edition was played by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in Eden Gardens, Kolkata. Rajat Patidar, captain of RCB, won the toss and elected to field first.
Asked to bat first, KKR scored 174 runs for the loss of 8 wickets. Quinton de Kock was gone cheaply, but KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane and Sunil Narine later created more troubles for RCB bowlers by scoring runs all over the ground. Ajinkya Rahane scored a well-deserved half-century with terrific shots, giving us a glimpse of his CSK knocks.
Just when KKR was cruising through, Krunal Pandya spoiled the batting team’s momentum by picking crucial wickets. Big players Russell, Rinku Singh, and Venkatesh Iyer were dismissed in a short span. At one moment, KKR seemed to score over 220, but RCB bowlers made a solid comeback to restrict them.
RCB batsman started the chase on a thunderous note. Openers Philip Salt and Virat Kohli went hard against KKR bowlers and gave a terrific start for RCB. The game was sealed in the powerplay itself with the openers going all guns blazing. KKR tried to stop the batsman, but as the target wasn’t big, RCB chased it down comfortably within 17 overs for a loss of 3 wickets.
Kohli and Salt scored half-centuries, while captain Rajat Patidar delivered some firecrackers in the end. RCB will surely be pleased with how their players performed and would like to see more of the same throughout the tournament.