Phil proves he is worth his salt, Starc justifies top dollar in Knights’ win

KOLKATA KNIGHT Riders (KKR) notched up their fourth win of the season, defeating Lucknow Super Giants by eight wickets at the Eden Gardens on Sunday.

The architects of the win were opener Phil Salt (89*), Shreyas Iyer (38*), and Mitchell Starc (3/28).

With LSG’S former mentor Gautam Gambhir in the Knights’ dugout this season, KKR ended their winless streak against the fledgling IPL franchise and took their tally to eight points.

Destroyer Salt, anchor Shreyas

Salt took over from Sunil Narine as destructor-in-chief, as the Englishman started Kolkata’s run chase in scintillating fashion. He pummeled Krunal Pandya for three fours in the third over with KKR reaching 58/2 after powerplay.

His kamikaze approach would get him his 50 in just 26 balls as KKR finished off the chase in 15.4 overs. Salt was ably supported by his captain Shreyas Iyer, who held up his end of the bargain, playing the perfect anchor role to his free scoring teammate. The duo raised their 100-run partnership in only 65 balls, knocking the wind out of LSG’S sails.

Even though a returning Mohsin Khan initially rattled the Knights, taking two wickets in the first 6 overs, the inexperience in the LSG pace attack was laid bare.

A classic case was West Indies’ latest pace sensation Shamar Joseph conceding 22 runs on his IPL debut, as Salt and Narine made merry.

His fellow pacers, except Mohsin, wouldn’t fare much better, with Yash Thakur, Arshad Khan and Pandya all leaking runs at regular intervals, a cardinal sin when defending a subpar total on a lightning quick outfield.

Starc on the money

The weather in Kolkata was sweltering with the temperature hovering around 39 degrees on Sunday, a reason Shreyas’s decision to field first raised a fair few eyebrows. But the collective efforts of the KKR bowlers would come good, just a day after Gambhir had emphasised the virtues of collectivism. They restricted LSG to 49 for 2 in the powerplay, the lowest against KKR this season.

Much to their joy, the 24.75 crore signing Mitchell Starc came good with three wickets for just 28 runs. Discovering his lengths, and not striving for nonexistent movement, he accounted for the returning Deepak Hooda, a rampaging Nicholas Pooran and Arshad Khan.

With Gambhir’s support behind him, this might have been the match that jets the lanky Australian up for a devastating IPL season. “Part of my role is to swing that ball, and I look to pitch it up and swing it. But on that wicket had to pull the length back,” he would say in the post innings chat, reflecting on his adaptability.

Early in the match though, Starc would do little to dispel his doubters when familiar foe Quinton de Kock smashed him for consecutive boundaries in his first over, before Vaibhav Arora struck in the second over to send the South African back. “It was a day game , so it was warmer than the last time we played here. Took some time getting used to. Wicket was probably a little two-paced,” Starc added.

Marcus Stoinis would last just 5 balls scoring 10, ultimately falling to Varun Chakaravarthy while Ayush Badoni (29) was snapped up by Narine. Pooran almost pulled off a rescue act for LSG but he was outfoxed by Starc, nicking behind for an easy catch to wicketkeeper Salt. However, without his 45 off 32, it would have been impossible for Lucknow to reach 161.

Rahul’s conversion woe

KL Rahul failed to convert a solid start yet again when Ramandeep Singh caught him in the deep off Andre Russell’s delivery in the 11th over. The Lucknow skipper, who gradually shifted gear after a steady start, even hitting a six off the previous ball before his dismissal, was looking in imperious form. He only steadied his team after de Kock and Deepak Hooda fell in the powerplay.

Rahul, who has often been criticized for his slow start as the debate about strike rates rages on, deposited Arora for a six and then followed it up with a boundary over the covers off Starc.

But he slowed down after the powerplay. His strike rate in the first six overs, which was 176.92, came down to 114.28. Perhaps that induced a risk, which ultimately failed to pay dividends. He has now scored 39, 39, 33, 20, 15 and 58 in this edition of the IPL, a worry for his franchise.

BRIEF SCORES: Lucknow Super Giants 161 for 7 in 20 overs (Pooran 45, Rahul 39; Starc 3/28) lost to Kolkata Knight Riders 162 for 2 in 15.4 overs (Salt 89 not out; Iyer 39 not out) by eight wickets.

SYNOPSIS

Destroyer Salt and anchor Shreyas star with defining partnership after on-the-money Starc makes his first big impression.

PTI Mitchell Starc took 3 for 28, his best bowling figures for the season.