Kolkata Knight Riders continued their remarkable late-season revival with a crushing eight-wicket win over Delhi Capitals at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Friday, thanks to a superb spin display followed by a breathtaking maiden IPL century from Finn Allen. The victory was KKR’s fourth successive win and kept their playoff hopes alive, while Delhi slipped deeper into trouble with their seventh defeat in 11 matches.
After opting to bowl first, Kolkata’s bowling unit delivered a clinical performance to restrict Delhi to just 142/8 on a surface where the hosts had earlier posted 264 this season. While Pathum Nissanka gave Delhi a bright start with an aggressive 50 off 29 balls, the innings gradually lost momentum once KKR’s spinners settled in. Nissanka and KL Rahul added fluency during the powerplay, taking Delhi to 49 while attacking anything loose. Nissanka looked particularly confident, finding boundaries through the off side and clearing the ropes with ease. However, KKR’s decision to trust spin from the very beginning proved decisive. Sunil Narine and Anukul Roy were introduced early and immediately slowed the scoring rate with disciplined lines and subtle variations. The breakthrough finally came when Kartik Tyagi dismissed Rahul for 23 with a slower delivery that forced an aerial mistake. Soon after, Cameron Green removed Nitish Rana cheaply to leave Delhi under pressure. From there, KKR’s spin trio tightened their grip completely. Varun Chakaravarthy bowled a miserly spell that dried up boundaries, forcing Delhi’s batters into risky shots. Narine then struck by dismissing Sameer Rizvi, who miscued a sweep straight into the deep. Nissanka briefly resisted and reached his half-century with a crisp boundary through extra cover, but Roy outfoxed him immediately after the milestone, luring him out of the crease for a stumping. Roy then trapped Tristan Stubbs in the same over as Delhi lost wickets in clusters once again. If not for Ashutosh Sharma’s counterattacking 39 off 28 deliveries, featuring three fours and three sixes, Delhi may have struggled to cross even the 120-run mark. Chasing 143, Delhi did manage to create early moments of excitement. Ajinkya Rahane suffered a bizarre run-out after the ball brushed Mitchell Starc’s fingertips onto the stumps at the non-striker’s end. Shortly after, Angkrish Raghuvanshi was dismissed in equally unfortunate fashion when the ball grazed his glove before rolling back onto the stumps. But once Allen settled, the chase quickly became one-sided. The New Zealand batter unleashed a six-hitting masterclass, dismantling Delhi’s bowling attack with fearless strokeplay. He dominated both pace and spin, smashing 10 sixes and five boundaries in an unbeaten 47-ball 100. Green played the perfect supporting role at the other end as the pair calmly rebuilt after the early wickets. Allen eventually sealed the game in emphatic fashion as KKR chased down the target in just 14.2 overs, completing another dominant victory in their dramatic turnaround this season.
