Mandeep Singh and Chris Gayle notched up a half-century each to guide Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) to a crucial eight-wicket victory over Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in Match 46 of the ongoing 13th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Monday.
Chasing a par total of 150 runs to win, skipper-cum opener KL Rahul (28) and Mandeep Singh provided a decent start to the Punjab-based franchise by stitching a 47-run stand for the opening wicket before the former was caught leg before wicket by Varun Chakravarthy in the eighth over.
Mandeep Singh then joined forces with Chris Gayle and the duo not only smashed a fifty each but also shared a 100-run stand for the second wicket to help KXIP cross the mark in 18.5 overs.
While Gayle departed for 29-ball 51 runs after being caught by Prasidh Krishna on a Lockie Ferguson delivery, Mandeep remained unbeaten at the crease at 56-ball 61 runs.
Earlier, Kings XI Punjab won the toss and elected to bowl first.
Mohammed Shami was the pick of the bowlers for Punjab with figures of three for 35, while Chris Jordan and Ravi Bishnoi bagged two wickets each as Knight Riders were restricted to a score of 149 for nine in their stipulated 20 overs.
Besides these three KXIP players, Glenn Maxwell and Murugan Ashwin also chipped in with a wicket each.
Opener Shubman Gill hammered a crucial 57-run knock off 45 deliveries for KKR. Skipper Eoin Morgan was the only other batsman for Knight Riders besides Gill to have managed to make notable contribution with 25-ball 40.
Gayle was adjudged ‘Player of the Match’ for his impressive performance with the bat.
With the win, Kings XI Punjab have now grabbed the fourth spot in the IPL 2020 standings with six wins from 12 matches.KKR,on the other hand, have dropped to the fifth place with six victories as well.
The victory saw the KL Rahul-led side stay in fray for a berth in IPL 2020 playoffs.
Brief scores: KKR: 149/9 wkts in 20 overs (S Gill 57, E Morgan 40, Lockie Ferguson 24 not out, Mohammed Shami 3/35, Ravi Bishnoi 2/20, C Jordan 2/25) lost to KXIP: 150/2 wkts in 18.5 overs (Mandeep Singh 66 not out, Chris Gayle 51, Lockie Ferguson 1/32) by eight wickets
