KKR beat RCB in thrilling tie

Agencies
April 6, 2019

Apr 6: Andre Russell once again snatched victory from the jaws of defeat by smashing an unbeaten 13-ball 48 as Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) beat Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) by five wickets in a rip-roaring Indian Premier League (IPL) encounter on Friday.

Russell came out to bat with KKR needing 67 runs off 26 balls. Skipper Dinesh Karthik (19) got out in the next over and in the last three overs, the away side needed 53 runs off 18 balls.

It is from there that Russell took over, smacking seven sixes and a four to help KKR win with five balls to spare. KKR posted 206/5, their highest run-chase in IPL history. RCB, thus, remained winless after five games.

Russell hit Marcus Stoinis for three back to back sixes in the 18th over and then took on Tim Southee with figures reading 6-6-6-4-6 to leave the visitors needing just one run from the last over. He combined with Shubman Gill (3 not out) to put together a 14-ball 53 run stand for the sixth wicket.

It poured cold water on Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers` show in the first innings as the pair roared back to form to help RCB post 205/3.

Chasing 206 for victory, Chris Lynn (43; 31b 4x4; 2x6) and Sunil Narine (10) gave KKR flying start. Narine did not last long, with Navdeep Saini (2/34) getting rid of him.

But Robin Uthappa (33; 25b 6x4) joined hands with Lynn to add 65 runs for the second wicket. But just before the halfway stage, Uthappa lost his wicket trying to clear long off where Tim Southee took the catch off Pawan Negi (2/21).

Lynn was dropped on 42 by Mohammed Siraj off Stoinis in the 11th over, but there was not much damage done as Negi castled him with a terrific delivery that spun heavily to beat the Australian`s outside edge.

It looked over for KKR from there on before Russell took it upon himself to finish the game in a way only he can.

Earlier, Put in to bat, Kohli struck a 49-ball 84 (4x9, 6x2) while De Villiers hit a 32-ball 63 (4x5, 6x4) as the famed pair stitched together a 108-run stand for the second wicket to treat the packed crowd at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium to a spectacle as RCB posted 205/3 in 20 overs.

Kohli was dropped by Narine on 35 while Lockie Ferguson could not hold on to a tough De Villiers catch when he was batting on 11.

The duo made the most of their second lives and with Stoinis hitting a 13-ball 28, RCB scored 127 runs in the last 10 overs with the last over from Prasidh Krishna going for 18 runs.

This was Kohli`s 35th IPL fifty as the India skipper went past Suresh Raina to become the T20 tournament`s highest ever run-getter.

While Kohli brought up his half-century in 31 balls, De Villiers took 28 deliveries to get there.

Kohli looked in sublime touch from the word go, milking Prasidh Krishna for two consecutive boundaries off the first two balls he faced.

Parthiv Patel (25) also looked good to continue his rich vein of form but part-time spinner Nitish Rana cut short his stay by trapping him plumb in front in the eighth over.

In the first ball of the same over, Rana could have sent Kohli back in the dugout as well but Narine dropped him at short midwicket.

Making the most of the reprieve, the Indian captain went from strength to strength, hitting Kuldeep Yadav for boundaries in the 10th over as RCB were 78/1 at the halfway stage.

De Villiers then joined the party after Ferguson failed to complete a difficult chance running long-on long on off Kuldeep in the 12th over.

From there on, De Villiers switched gears like only he can to hit Narine for two fours in the next over and two sixes off Andre Russell in the 14th over as the West Indian leaked 16 runs.

After Kohli`s dismissal, KKR tried to stem the flow of runs and when De Villiers holed out to Shubman Gill on the extra cover boundary off Narine, it looked possible.

But Stoinis hit 18 off Prasidh Krishna`s last over to guide his team past the 200-run mark.

Brief scores: Royal Challengers Bangalore 205/3 (Virat Kohli 84, AB de Villiers 63; Nitish Rana 1/22) vs Kolkata Knight Riders (206/5 in 19.1 overs (Andre Russell 48, Chris Lynn 43; Pawan Negi 2/21, Navdeep Saini 2/34).

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News Network
March 22,2024

IPL.jpg

The start of the world’s most lucrative cricket tournament in India is presenting investors with another big opportunity to cash in on the sport, months after the world’s most populous nation hosted the Cricket World Cup.

The eight-week long Indian Premier League begins March 22 for its 17th season. Since its inception, the fast-paced cricket tournament has become a corporate juggernaut to rival the National Football League in the US and the English Premier League in value.

Just as October’s Cricket World Cup boosted consumption in India for months, fans are expected to flock to restaurants, pubs and food delivery platforms over the duration of the tournament. This year’s IPL also coincides with general elections that will last for six weeks starting April 19, a period when companies are expecting higher food and drink sales as people flock to rallies and other events.

“There’s going to be a lot of spending,” said Madan Sabnavis, chief economist at Bank of Baroda. “IPL, as well as the election, gives a three-month corridor with enhanced economic activity.”

Stocks in India such as McDonald’s franchise operator Westlife Foodworld Ltd. and peer Sapphire Foods India Ltd. gained ahead of the first match on Friday, as well as hotels and beverage makers. Packaged-food companies could also stand to benefit from the IPL craze, said Sachil Bobade, an analyst at investment firm Dolat Capital Market.

The IPL ecosystem was valued at $11 billion (Rs 91,721 crores) in 2023, including the value of media rights and sponsorships, according to Indian valuation consulting firm D&P Advisory.

The league is also attracting record sums of money from sponsors and broadcasters. Conglomerate Tata Group won the title sponsorship rights of the tournament in January for a record 25 billion rupees ($300 million). Billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s media venture secured the digital streaming rights in 2022 for five years for $2.7 billion, while Walt Disney Co. paid roughly the same for TV rights.

“There was a serious amount of bidding even this year,” said Vinit Karnik, head of entertainment, esports and sports at media agency GroupM South Asia. “I see growth in IPL in double digits year-on-year,” he adds.

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