Punjab Kings (PBKS) beat a sloppy Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) by 5 wickets in in Dubai on Friday to fetch crucial two points. The win helped them stay alive in the hunt for a spot in the Playoffs, as they now have 10 points from as many matches.
Chasing 166, Punjab captain K.L. Rahul slammed a 49-ball 67 before a 9-ball 22 from Shahrukh Khan helped them cross the finishing line with three balls to spare. KKR went in with only four specialist bowlers, and the fifth bowler's role was done by Nitish Rana and Venkatesh Iyer. Between them, they gave away 37 runs in 3.3 overs. The Knight Riders were also sloppy on the field, and dripped quite a few catches.
Earlier, put into bat, Iyer top-scored for KKR 67 off 49 balls before Rana provided a handy finishing touch with an 18-ball 31. The Kings' win, though, had much to do with their excellent bowling performance from their Indian trio of Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh and Ravi Bishnoi who combined to take 6-77 in 12 overs to peg back KKR to 165/7 after their rapid start.
Brief scores: Kolkata Knight Riders 165/7 in 20 overs (Iyer 67; Arshdeep 3-34) lost to Punjab Kings 168/5 in 19.3 overs (Rahul 67; Chakravarthy 2-24) by 5 wickets. Player of the Match: K.L. Rahul.