Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) suffered an agonising one-run defeat against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at the Eden Gardens Stadium on May 20 (Saturday). Chasing a target of 177 runs, the Knight Riders started the game in fabulous fashion with openers Venkatesh Iyer and Jason Roy giving the team a solid start. The duo combined for a 61-run stand inside the first six overs of the innings. LSG then hit back by picking up timely wickets and stemming the flow of runs to increase pressure on the Knight Riders batters.
With Rinku Singh holding the fort at one end, KKR was in the game until the last ball of the match. Needing 41 runs from the last two overs, Rinku exploded at Eden Gardens and fans were right behind him, urging the left-handed batter to pull off another incredible heist. Rinku whacked three consecutive fours in the first three balls of the 19th over and then smashed a 110-meter six on the fifth delivery. A total of 20 runs came off the penultimate over.
With 20 runs needed off six balls, the explosive batter once again stared at a daunting task, which only got more challenging with 18 runs needed from the last three balls of the game. Rinky smoked the fourth ball a massive six over the cow corner fence and the tension in LSG camp was palpable. On the penultimate ball of the game, the KKR batter failed to get the elevation and settled for a four through extra cover. Rinku deposited the last delivery for another six but his effort went in vain as KKR fell short by one run.
After the game, KKR captain Nitish Rana was speechless when asked about Rinku's scintillating effort with the bat once again.
"I feel, in 14 matches I have captained, I have talked about Rinku Singh only. He is very close to me and I know how well he has delivered. I am lost for words for Rinku. If he can bat this way in these crunch situations, you now how good he is," Rana said after the match.
With their eighth win of the season, LSG booked their spot in Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 playoffs. They have qualified for the eliminator and will face either Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) or Mumbai Indians (MI) in the high-voltage clash.
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