Dubai: A fantastic spell of pace bowling by Jofra Archer (2/18) restricted Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to 174 for six in 20 overs in their IPL game against Rajasthan Royals here Wednesday. Jofra Archer picked up the crucial wicket of Shubman Gill (47, 34b, 5×4, 1×6) and KKR skipper Dinesh Karthik after Rajasthan Royals had put the opposition in to bat after winning the toss.
Archer picked up both the wickets in his second spell when KKR was just starting to stamp their authority on the game. Gill, who batted beautifully in the previous game against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), again looked set for a big score. However, trying to play the ball down the leg-side he closed the face of the bat too soon and that resulted in a return catch to the bowler. Then Karthik, who has been out of form in the tournament so far fished at a delivery from Archer outside the off-stump and was caught behind.
Andre Russell (24, 14b, 3×6) showed promise, but could not convert after a good start. It was then left to the experience of Eoin Morgan ( 34 n o, 23b, 1×4, 2×6) and Pat Cummins (17) to push KKR towards a fighting score. However, such has been the form of the likes of Steve Smith, Sanju Samson and even Rahul Tewatia that any total may not look daunting for them.
The other bowlers to pick up wickets for RR were Ankit Rajput (1/39), Tom Curran (1/37), Tewatia (1/6) and Jaidev Unadkat (1/14).
Brief scores: KKR in 20 overs (Shubman Gill 47, Eoin Morgan 34 n o, Jofra Archer 2/18). Rajasthan Royals to bat.
