In a thrilling encounter between Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, the Knight Riders emerged victorious by 5 runs.
Batting first, KKR posted a respectable total of 171/9 in their allotted 20 overs. Captain Nitish Rana and superstar Rinku Singh were the standout performers for KKR, scoring 42 and 46 runs respectively. For Sunrisers, Marco Jansen and T Natarajan picked up two wickets each.
In response, SRH started off on a positive note, but lost wickets at regular intervals and were always chasing the game. Aiden Markram top-scored for SRH with 41 runs, while Heinrich Klaasen and Abdul Samad made useful contributions down the order.
However, some disciplined bowling from KKR, especially from Vaibhav Arora and Shardul Thakur, saw SRH fall short by 5 runs, finishing their innings on 166/8 in 20 overs. Shardul and Vaibhav picked up two wickets each, while Harshit Rana, Anukul Roy, Andre Russell, and Varun Chakrvarthy claimed one wicket each. Chakravarthy, in particular, played a crucial role as he defended eight runs in the final over to help KKR seal the deal.
Here is how Twitter reacted:
These emotions…𝗧𝗛𝗘𝗦𝗘 𝗘𝗠𝗢𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦!💜pic.twitter.com/6rk5FxQRsP
— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) May 4, 2023
Well done @NitishRana_27 and @rinkusingh235 for scoring those important runs and superb captainship.. how good was bowling #varunchakrwathy last over. top class decision . Mza aaya 👏🏏👍♠️ congratulations @KKRiders
— Harbhajan Turbanator (@harbhajan_singh) May 4, 2023
Varun Chakravarthy in the 18th and 20th over vs SRH today:
18th – 2lb, 1b, 2, 0, 0, 0
20th – 1, 1lb, W, 0, 1, 01 for 4 in the last 2 overs
Seals victory for KKR and win the Man of the Match award! #SRHvKKR pic.twitter.com/7IvcqFfzzA
— Bharath Seervi (@SeerviBharath) May 4, 2023
.@chakaravarthy29 successfully keeps his skipper’s trust and how!! What a last over and spell! Nice comeback from @KKRiders!! Great spells from Harshit & @imShard as well! The @KKRiders guns @NitishRana_27, @rinkusingh235 & @Russell12A fired brilliantly tonight!! #SRHvKKR
— Robin Aiyuda Uthappa (@robbieuthappa) May 4, 2023
KKR pulls off a thriller against SRH: https://t.co/ndNYYzU1SG#cricket #ipl2023 #SRHvKKR #CricketTwitter pic.twitter.com/v2Y3pMJigp
— CricketTimes.com (@CricketTimesHQ) May 4, 2023
Chakravarthy has got that fizz back in his bowling.
— Bharath Ramaraj (@Fancricket12) May 4, 2023
Varun Chakravarthy said "My heartbeat was at 200 in the final over (smiles)". pic.twitter.com/xxV9AzFppY
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) May 4, 2023
— SunRisers Hyderabad (@SunRisers) May 4, 2023
Aiden Markram should have finished this game after taking it this deep. There was no full-fledged batsman left after he got out. Anyway, the table is shaping up quite well. #SRHvsKKR #IPL2023 pic.twitter.com/kaEmMo0VwW
— Ridhima Pathak (@PathakRidhima) May 4, 2023
Truly remarkable!!
— Ian Raphael Bishop (@irbishi) May 4, 2023