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Bengaluru, March 29 (IANS) Virat Kohli's unbeaten 83 off 59 balls and a quick-fire 33 in 21 balls by Cameron Green propelled Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) to 182/6 in 20 overs against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium here on Saturday.
Asked to bat first, RCB lost their skipper Faf du Plessis for a mere 8 runs. However, Virat Kohli and Cameron Green played with authority in the Power-play, the dynamic duo added 65 runs for the second wicket, with Green falling prey to Sunil Narine after scoring 33 runs. Just when it seemed like RCB was set for a massive total, Narine struck, dismissing the dangerous Green. The momentum swung slightly in KKR's favour, but Kohli stood tall, anchoring the innings with his masterful stroke play.
Despite losing wickets at regular intervals, Kohli continued to pile on the runs, reaching yet another fifty in his illustrious career. However, the KKR fielders were not at their sharpest, dropping Glenn Maxwell twice, providing crucial lifelines to the RCB batsman.
Maxwell, however, failed to capitalise on these chances and departed after a breezy cameo, scoring 28 in 19 deliveries. With Rajat Patidar and Anuj Rawat departing for three each, the onus was on Kohli to stay in the middle and guide RCB to a competitive total. He did that and found an able partner in Dinesh Karthik, the seasoned campaigner, who once again proved his mettle in the dying overs. With a blazing 20 in 8 deliveries, Karthik propelled RCB past the 180-run mark, ensuring a challenging target for KKR. Kohli and Dinesh Karthik's late surge helped Bengaluru finish on a high note. He and Kohli scored 29 runs in the final two overs as Bengaluru reached 182 runs.
It did not start well for Kolkata as they went for 61 runs with the solitary wicket of Faf du Plessis in the batting Power-play. Harshit Rana and Andre Russell bagged a couple of wickets each for KKR, while Sunil Narine celebrated a solitary wicket. Kolkata Knight Riders now need 183 runs to win this contest and become the first team to win an away match in IPL 2024.
Brief scores:
Royal Challengers Bengaluru 182/6 in 20 overs (Virat Kohli 83 not out, Cameron Green 33; Andre Russel 2-29, Harshit Rana 2-39) against Kolkata Knight Riders.
--IANS
hs/bsk/
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