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Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) suffered their third consecutive, this time to Rajasthan Royals (RR), as the two-time Indian Premier League (IPL) champions were unable to capitalise on their captain Shreyas Iyer and opener Aaron Finch's brilliant start while chasing a hefty target of 218. During the match, Shreyas was not happy with his batting partner Venkatesh Iyer as they tried to chase down the huge target set by the Royals at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai on April 18.
The incident took place on the last ball of the 16th over when Venkatesh lofted the ball over point and took a run. Shreyas expected the 27-year-old Venkatesh to come back for a second but was sent back and almost lost his wicket to a run-out. It was Shimron Hetmyer who collected the ball and released it in one swift motion. Venkatesh just calmly listened to it while the captain was scolding him.
The move went on to prove costly for KKR as Venkatesh was dismissed on the very next ball bowled by Yuzvendra Chahal, for just six runs. Chahal, who has already conceded 38 runs and was bowling his last over, made it count by picking up a hat-trick, including the wickets of Shreyas Iyer and Pat Cummins as the match slipped from the hands of the Kolkata-based franchise.
Earlier in the game, RR openers Devdutt Padikkal, who hit 24, and Jos Buttler added 97 runs in 9.4 overs before Padikkal was bowled by Sunil Narine, who was playing his 150th match for KKR (in all competitions). Buttler continued his terrific form in IPL 2022 and slammed 103 in 61 balls with five sixes and nine fours to his name. This was also the Englishman's second century of the season, the first coming against five-time champions Mumbai Indians (MI).
Meanwhile, RR skipper Sanju Samson also hit 38 runs in 19 balls with three fours and two sixes, as RR posted a competitive score of 218.
The best batter for KKR was Shreyas, who hit 85 in 51 balls with seven fours and four sixes to his name. He notched a 107-run partnership with Finch, who scored a 28-ball 58 for the Knight Riders.
