Kolkata Knight Riders (KKT) moved to the top of the points table after they bagged the second win on the trot to take their count to three in the IPL 2018. KKR comprehensively defeated Rajasthan Royals in Jaipur by 7 wickets.
Chasing a target of 161 runs, KKR lost Chris Lynn early but Sunil Narine and Robin Uthappa held the innings together and stitched a stand of 69 runs before Narine was run out for 35 off 25 deliveries.
Later, KKR lost Uthappa for 48, courtesy a brilliant catch from Ben Stokes at long on. But the fall of wickets didn’t really affect the scoring rate of the visitors as Nitish Rana and captain Dinesh Karthik notched up a stand of 61 runs to take their team over the line.
Initially, it was Dinesh Karthik who won the toss and asked the home side to set the target on the board. Ajinkya Rahane started the things in a flash by hammering Sunil Narine for four boundaries in an over. However, the blistering effort from Karthik sent Rahane back and it was the start of the turn out in the match.
None of the Rajasthan batsmen stood firm in the middle thus ended their innings at 160 runs on the board. Interestingly, they never got going despite the in-form batsman staying at the crease.
Here’s how Twitter reacted to KKR’s win over RR:
Another good game for Nitish Rana. And I have so enjoyed watching Dinesh Karthik bat. For #KKR to win against a good #RajasthanRoyals team without needing Andre Russell is an excellent result.
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) April 18, 2018
Very comfortable win again for the @KKRiders . DK's composure was vital in the end but what amazing consistency and responsibility young Nitish Rana has taken #RRvKKR
— Mohammad Kaif (@MohammadKaif) April 18, 2018
That Rahane run out/stumping tho ! 🏏👌🏾💯💥
superb work from @DineshKarthik to get an important dismissal ! #RRvKKR— Ranveer Singh (@RanveerOfficial) April 18, 2018
The @KKRiders looking good this season. A well-balanced side putting in consistent enough performances. #RRvKKR
— Ranveer Singh (@RanveerOfficial) April 18, 2018
18th April, 2008 – #KKR dominate and win the first-ever #VIVOIPL match!
18th April, 2018 – @KKRiders dominate and win in #RRvKKR!
— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) April 18, 2018
Nitish Rana has delivered another Man-Of-The-Match performance. Has been the top performer in all the games KKR has won thus far. Well done. #RRvKKR #IPL
— Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) April 18, 2018
Congratulations @KKRiders on the third victory, Well Played @DineshKarthik , @NitishRana_27 & @robbieuthappa #RRvKKR
— Rajeev Shukla (@ShuklaRajiv) April 18, 2018
Dinesh Karthik leads KKR to the top of the points table #IPL2018 pic.twitter.com/AKz0QSQXTC
— CricketTimes.com (@CricketTimesHQ) April 19, 2018
DK is making a habit of these finishes with a six #RRvKKR
— Gaurav Kalra (@gauravkalra75) April 18, 2018
💜💜💜 Great batting effort by Narine (35), Uthappa (48), Rana (35*) & DK (42*) puts an end to @rajasthanroyals' 9-match unbeaten run at home.💪
🔝 of the Table! 😎#RRvKKR #IPL2018 #KKRHaiTaiyaar pic.twitter.com/GUbjPhMlnt
— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) April 18, 2018
Nitish Rana seems a class act. Very intelligent cricketer who can play according to the needs of the situation. Useful bowler too. Very impressive #RRvKKR #VIVOIPL
— Hemant (@hemantbuch) April 18, 2018
Google is on point ✔️#RRvKKR pic.twitter.com/3rztPH98uc
— Sportskeeda (@Sportskeeda) April 18, 2018
https://twitter.com/messyrodeo/status/986638154613608448
Only positive thing about this boring game was it ended half an hour early. #IPL
— Silly Point (@FarziCricketer) April 18, 2018
Kolkata Knight Riders become the first team to win 50 matches while chasing in the IPL. They were also the first team with 50 wins in the Twenty20 format while chasing. #IPL2018 #RRvKKR
— Sampath Bandarupalli (@SampathStats) April 18, 2018
aaj fir srk ne shilpa shetty ko chhat se niche gira diya
— Sunil the Cricketer (@1sInto2s) April 18, 2018
Kolkata Knight Riders Beat Rajasthan Royals By 7 Wickets. Great Batting, Fielding And Captaincy By Dinesh Karthik. Well Supported By Nitish Rana. 💪🙏 #RRvKKR #RRvsKKR #KKRvRR pic.twitter.com/pvrcWqcTrt
— Sir Jadeja fan (@SirJadeja) April 18, 2018
