History changes in the New Year. Kolkata Knight Riders defeated Lucknow Super Giants in IPL. Batting first at Eden, Lucknow scored 161 runs. Kolkata won by 8 wickets. Phil Salt’s bat made it easy for KKR to win. However, before that, Sunil Narine’s bowling helped keep Lucknow to a low number of runs. Kolkata lost to Lucknow for the first time. Knights changed history on the field of Eden.
Eden’s pitch batting is helpful. Kolkata captain Shreyas Iyer decided to bowl first after winning the toss on that pitch. Lucknow captain Lokesh Rahul also said that he would have bowled if he had won the toss. How correct that decision was was understood in Lucknow’s power play. Lucknow scored only 49 runs. KKR’s bowlers were keeping the runs at bay. Sunil Narine did that job best. He gave only 17 runs in 4 overs. It is said that Eden’s pitch now helps the pacers. Narine showed how to bowl on that pitch.
Lucknow’s run rate dropped further after the power play. Rahul, who scored 39 runs off 27 balls, hit only two sixes. Ayush Badoni, who scored 29 runs off 27 balls, hit one. Their sluggish innings hindered Lucknow’s big runs. Lucknow who scored 49 runs in the first 6 overs, they scored only 64 runs in the next 9 overs. It looked like Lucknow’s innings might end within 140 runs. But as the sun goes down, the game gets easier in Eden. Next up, Nicholas Puran scored 45 off 32 balls. He hit four sixes. Lucknow crossed the barrier of 160 runs with his bat in the last over. Lucknow scored 48 runs in the last 5 overs.
