By K Aditya
Sharjah, Sep 28 (UNI) A clinical bowling display, led by Sunil Narine (2/18) and Lockie Ferguson (2/18), has helped Kolkata Knight Riders restrict Delhi Capitals to a modest 127/9 in match 42 of IPL 2021 here on Tuesday. Venkatesh Iyer (2/29) also chipped in with wickets as Delhi's top-order faltered after the Powerplay.
Makeshift opener Steve Smith and captain Rishabh Pant top-scored for Delhi with 39 each with the latter squeezing in runs at the death to take DC past 120.
Sent in to bat first, Delhi Capitals walked in with a new opening pair as Steve Smith stepped in for injured Prithvi Shaw while Shikhar Dhawan took charge of early scoring. The southpaw smashed four boundaries in the first three overs to give some comfort to DC on what was soon expected to be a slow surface. Dhawan, however, couldn't consolidate on the good start and fell to Lockie Ferguson after scoring a 20-ball 24 as DC scoreboard read 35/1 in the fifth over.
KKR took further control of the game as a sharp turn by Sunil Narine got the big scalp of in-form Shreyas Iyer for a mere 1 run right after the powerplay. Smith and newly-in captain Rishabh Pant tried to bring DC back on the track with a patient 36-ball 37 partnership for the third wicket. Smith used his class to counter the threat of mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy by hitting him for two consecutive boundaries but couldn't covert his well-crafted innings into a half-century.
With 77 runs on the board, the Australian modern-day great became Ferguson's second victim of the day after scoring a 34-ball 39. This triggered a middle-order collapse with three wickets falling in as many overs. Venkatesh Iyer showcased his skills with the ball by removing dangermen Shimron Hetmyer (4 off 5)and Axar Patel (0 off 5) cheaply. Narine squeezed in with his second wicket by outsmarting Lalit Yadav for a duck as DC feared the worst at 92 for six down in the 16th over.
Pant (39 off 36) tried to add some semblance to DC's total but lack of support from the other end meant DC could only post 127/9 in 20 overs. Southee first removed Ashwin for 9 runs while Dinesh Karthik inflicted two run-outs -- Pant and Avesh Khan (5 off 3) -- in the last over to keep the momentum with KKR.
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