Kolkata Knight Riders post challenging 177/6

Title holders Kolkata Knight Riders built on a sound start provided by skipper Gautam Gambhir and Robin Uthappa to plunder 177/6 in their Indian Premier League match against Royal Challengers Bangalore here on Saturday.

Gambhir continued his rollicking form in the tournament to crack a 46-ball 58 (7x4, 1x6) while Uthappa struck 35 of 28 deliveries (4x4) as the duo put on 81 for the opening wicket, before West Indies cricketer Andre Russel provided a perfect finish with a cameo at the Eden Gardens.

It was largely due to Russel's lusty hittings that 55 runs came of the last five overs, enabling the hosts to set an asking rate of 8.9 for the Royal Challengers after being put in to bat.

The Jamaican remained unconquered on a 17-ball 41 that was studded with six boundaries and two sixes on a day the visitors fielded sloppily dropping a couple of easy chances besides conceding a few runs due to their ineptness.

The evening's very first delivery saw a boundary as Uthappa opened the face of the bat to pacer Sean Abbott and Abu Nechim misfielded at third man. The opening over produced 13 runs.

Both the inaugural bowlers Abbott and Harshal Patel proved expensive as 40 runs came off the first four overs.

Gambhir lifted Abbott out of the ground in the third over, while Uthappa cracked two boundaries of Harshal Patel in the next.

Fifty of the innings was posted in 5.2 overs, but a little later Gambhir got a reprieve as AB de Villiers failed to hold on to an easy chance at deep mid wicket. The Knights' skipper was then on 31 and Nechim was the unlucky bowler.

The Knights reached 77/2 at the halfway stage, before Nechim got the breakthrough as Uthappa tried to hit a short ball over the ropes and finished in the hands of Darren Sammy at long on.

Gambhir reached his second consecutive 50 of the current chapter of the IPL with a single in the 13th over, thereby becoming the first batsman in tournament history to complete 25 half-centuries.

The left hander, however, departed in the very next over, unable to middle a full length delivery from spinner Yajuvendra Chahal and was taken in the deep. The team score was 103/2 in 13.2 overs.

Manish Pandey tried to accelerate the tempo in the company of last match hero Suryakumar Yadav, till Patel came back for his second spell and straightaway delivered a double blow by taking the duo of successive balls.

Russel prevented the hat-trick and lashed out against Nechim in the next over, picking up a four and six. The over produced a dozen, while 14 came from the 19th with Russel again going for the slog.