Kolkata Knight Riders pulled off a sensational six-wicket victory over Punjab Kings in the Indian Premier League on April 1, Friday. The win was a spectacular one for many reasons--first, it was Umesh Yadav continuing his resurgence as a quality bowler in limited-overs cricket and second, Andre Russell clocking back those days when he scored runs for fun. The West Indies all-rounder smashed his way to an unbeaten 70 off 31 balls. Russell memorably took apart Odean Smith in the 12th over. Eventually, it was a happy night for the Knight Riders who find themselves at the top of the points table, with Russell and Yadav grabbing the Orange Cap and Purple Cap respectively. Ajinkya Rahane Completes 4000 Runs in IPL, Achieves Feat During KKR vs PBKS Match

Defending 138, Punjab Kings found themselves coming back into the game when Rahul Chahar produced a double-wicket maiden in the eighth over. At 51/4, things looked tricky for KKR. But it was not how Sam Billings and Russell felt. The duo mixed caution and aggression with Russell being the one to hit the big shots as KKR eventually won the game in 14.3 overs and with six wickets to spare. Earlier, Yadav wrecked Punjab Kings' batting order with figures of 4/23. He first dismissed Punjab skipper Mayank Agarwal in the first over of the match and then returned to take the wickets of Liam Livingstone, Harpreet Brar and Rahul Chahar. IPL 2022 Points Table Updated With NRR

A point worth mentioning here is that Bhanuka Rajapaksa scored 31 runs off just nine deliveries in the powerplay, something that helped Punjab start on a high after losing their skipper. They took Shivam Mavi apart but the latter had the last laugh when he dismissed the Sri Lankan in the fourth over. Southee, apart from his bowling effort, pulled off two spectacular catches on the field.

 

Here are some stat highlights of the game:

#Umesh Yadav completed 50 powerplay wickets in IPL.

#He also registered his best figures in the IPL-4/23

#The pacer also grabbed his sixth Man of the Match award against Punjab Kings, the most by a player against a team in IPL

#Tim Southee got to 250 T20 wickets, becoming the first New Zealand bowler to do so

#Ajinkya Rahane completed 4000 runs in IPL.

#Andre Russell completed 150 sixes in IPL in 72 innings. He also scored his 10th IPL fifty.

KKR have a few days' break now and would once again be in action against five-time champions Mumbai Indians on April 6. Meanwhile, Punjab Kings have Chennai Super Kings as their next opponents in the competition on April 3.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 02, 2022 12:18 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).