Who won the match between RR vs. KKR: IPL 2021?

IPL 2021, Match 18, RR vs. KKR, was played at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai. RR won the toss and decided to bowl first, which was the right call as batting second is much easier here because of the dew factor. However, KKR never got going and only scored 133/9, which was insufficient to scare the opposition. In reply, RR cruised to a victory by six wickets, proving they are a good chasing team. 

KKR Innings

KKR were off to a very slow start as both the openers, Rana and Gill could not use the powerplay restrictions to their advantage and score quick runs. Gill succumbed to a runout, scoring 11 of 19 balls. Nitish Rana scratched around but was deceived by Chetan Sakariya and got out in the 8th over. Next, Narine and Morgan didn’t last long and were sent back to the pavilion thanks to a brilliant catch by Jaiswal in the deep and a runout, respectively. DK played a cameo inning of 24 runs giving some respectability to the total in the end. Tripathi played well, scoring 36 from 26 before getting caught in the deep by Parag. Eventually, KKR made 113/9 in 20 overs, which was not enough to challenge a strong RR batting lineup. 

 1st Innings Stats: 

KKR: 133/9(20 Overs)

Best Batting:

R Tripathi: 36 (26)

D Karthik: 25 (24)

N Rana: 22(25)

Best Bowling:

C Morris: 4/23

M Rahman: 1/22

J Unadkat: 1/25

RR Innings

Chasing a target of 134 runs in 20 overs, RR lost Jos Buttler early as mystery spinner Chakravarthy got an LBW decision in his favor.  Jaiswal was playing his shots at the other end, scoring a 17 ball 22 that included 5 boundaries. Sanju Samson came to the crease, looked in silky touch, and joined the chase along with Jaiswal. When the team score reached 40, Jaiswal mishit a shot and was caught by sub-Nagarkoti of Mavi’s bowling. Samson and Dubey then rescued RR and added 45 runs to the score, making the chase easier. Dubey made a brisk 22 and got out to fast bowler Prasidh Krishna. David Miller then joined Samson and completed the chase with one over to spare. Samson scored 42 from 41 deliveries and got RR home. KKR was not at its best in the field. They dropped catches that proved very costly and lost them the game. 

2nd Innings Stats: 

RR: 134/4 (18.5 Overs)

Best Batting:

S Samson: 42 (41)

D Miller: 24(23)

Y Jaiswal: 22 (17)

Best Bowling:

V Chakravarthy: 3/32

S Mavi:1/19

P Krishna: 1/20

Final Match Result: RR won by 6 wickets 

Man of the match: Chris Morris

IPL 2021, Match 18, RR vs. KKR was mostly a one-sided affair as KKR managed only 133 in their allotted 20 overs. In reply, RR had minor hiccups but eventually won the match quite easily. Chris Morris was adjudged Man of the Match for his brilliant bowling spell of 4/23. KKR still hasn’t found its mojo and has to play much better cricket. On the other hand, the inconsistent RR is finally looking good to make it to the playoffs if they continue to play good cricket. 

Reference Links:

https://www.espncricinfo.com/series/ipl-2021-1249214/rajasthan-royals-vs-kolkata-knight-riders-18th-match-1254075/full-scorecard

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