Kolkata: Prabhsimran Singh and Priyansh Arya slammed stellar half-centuries to lay a solid opening foundation, but Kolkata Knight Riders pulled things back at the death as Punjab Kings posted 201 for 4 in their IPL match in Kolkata Saturday.
In-form Arya, who scored a maiden IPL century against Chennai Super Kings, continued his dream debut season with a classy 27-ball fifty.
He, along with the seasoned Prabhsimran, gave PBKS a blazing start with a 120-run opening stand in just 11.5 overs.
Arya was the early aggressor, crafting a fluent 69 off 35 balls (8x4s, 4x6s), while Prabhsimran shifted gears after Arya’s dismissal, finishing with a sparkling 83 off 49 deliveries (6x4s, 6x6s).
From a tentative 32 off 34 balls, Prabhsimran exploded by smashing 49 runs off his next 17 balls.
However, the momentum dipped after Prabhsimran’s departure, with KKR conceding just 40 runs and picking up two wickets in the final five overs, a phase that could leave PBKS 20-30 runs short of a daunting total.
Vaibhav Arora (2/34) was the pick of KKR bowlers, dismissing Prabhsimran with a full toss.
Andre Russell, who broke the opening stand by removing Arya in the 12th over, finished with 1/27 from three tidy overs.
Varun Chakravarthy (1/39) and Sunil Narine (0/35) also played key roles in slowing down the scoring rate in the second half.
In full flow, Prabhsimran had earlier unleashed an assault on Chakravarthy, smashing him for 4-6-4 in a 19-run over as PBKS looked set for a total in excess of 230.
Between overs 10 and 15, they hammered 71 runs and run rate went past 11 runs per over.
It proved a good toss to win for Punjab Kings, who made merry on a batting paradise with the ball coming nicely onto the bat against a low-on-confidence KKR side.
Unlike previous matches where the pitch slowed down, Saturday’s strip was perfect for batting, and Arya capitalised with his array of elegant strokes.
He showed intent right from the start, cracking a cover drive off Arora and later lofting a stunning six over third man off a wide yorker from Harshit Rana.
The 23-year-old Delhi batter looked full of maturity, dominating KKR’s attack with flair, while Prabhsimran overcame a slow start to launch a brutal assault once well-set.
Despite adding Chetan Sakariya and Rovman Powell to their lineup and employing a seven-bowler strategy, KKR once again struggled to master their home conditions at Eden Gardens.
PTI
