Quinton de Kock struck a sensational hundred and shared a record opening stand with skipper KL Rahul as Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) pipped Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) by two runs in a last-ball IPL thriller to seal their play-off spot on Wednesday.
De Kock gave a batting masterclass enroute to an unbeaten 140 off 70 balls as he and Rahul (68 not out off 51) fired LSG to 210 for no loss, the highest opening stand in IPL history.
It was a steep chase but KKR stayed in the game through Nitish Rana (42) and captain Shreyas Iyer (50) but it was too big a task for the lower-order. Their innings ended 208 for eight in 20 overs.
The two-run loss knocked KKR out of the IPL but that did not stop losing captain Shreyas Iyer to describe it as "one of the best games" that he has ever been part of.
"I am not feeling sad at all. That was one of the best games of cricket I have played. The way we should our character and attitude was simply outstanding," said Iyer after KKR's exit.
"I love the way Rinku got us till the end but unfortunately couldn't time it when two balls were remaining, he was really sad. I was hoping he could finish the game for us and could have been the hero, but still played a fantastic knock and I am really happy for him."
KKR had to win to stay alive in the tournament.
"It was a do or die situation for us, even after losing two wickets in the powerplay our mindset was to go for the chase and take it close as possible and put them under pressure." On the season, he added: "It was a volatile season for us, we started great but lost five games in a row and I personally feel we did a lot of chopping and changing, we had to do that because of the niggles and form, but we also got to know the players such as Rinku.
"The vibe has always been positive in the dressing room and we never hit the panic button. I have built a really good relationship with Baz (McCullum) and he is someone who is calm and composed even when the situation is going out of the way, you can go and talk to him at any point of the game.
"He's got that aura when he walks around the players and never judges the players, all of us are equal for him," he said.
