NEW DELHI: Kolkata Knight Riders witnessed a staggering display of power-hitting from the Punjab Kings, who etched their name in the annals of T20 cricket history with a breathtaking run chase at the Eden Gardens, overshadowing a moment of contention involving KKR mentor Gautam Gambhir.
Punjab Kings chased down a formidable target of 262 runs with unprecedented ease, inspired by Jonny Bairstow's scintillating century.
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Gambhir's frustration boiled over during a contentious moment in KKR's innings. Following a disputed single in the 14th over, Gambhir engaged in a heated exchange with the fourth umpire, visibly expressing his discontent over the decision.
On the last delivery of the 14th over, Andre Russell cut a delivery from Rahul Chahar to the cover. Ashutosh Sharma made the stop but threw it wide of wicketkeeper Jitesh Sharma and the KKR batter took a single. But umpire Anil Chaudhary signaled the ball was dead and the single was not counted.
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Despite posting a mammoth total riding on explosive innings from Sunil Narine and Phil Salt, Punjab Kings' relentless onslaught with the bat left Gambhir helpless on the sidelines. The blistering half-century from Prabhsimran Singh and Bairstow's sensational ton shattered KKR's hopes of a victory, as Punjab Kings sealed a memorable win with eight wickets in hand and eight balls to spare.
While Gambhir's frustration may have momentarily clouded the atmosphere in the KKR camp, it was ultimately eclipsed by Punjab Kings' record-breaking triumph.
1/10:Punjab pull off record T20 chase against Kolkata
AFP
2/10:Highest successful run chase
<p>Jonny Bairstow smashed a "ballistic" unbeaten century as Punjab Kings recorded the highest successful run chase in Twenty20 cricket with an eight-wicket thrashing of Kolkata Knight Riders on Friday. </p>AFP
3/10:Jonny Bairstow
<p>The England star clobbered nine sixes and eight fours in his 48-ball 108 to help Punjab overhaul Kolkata's 261-6 with eight balls to spare. </p>AFP
4/10:Shashank Singh
<p>Shashank Singh also impressed with the bat, making 68 not out off 28 balls with eight sixes and two fours. </p>AFP
5/10:Sixes galore!
<p>The match also saw the batsmen club 42 sixes -- the most ever hit in a T20 game. </p>AFP
6/10:Ballistic Bairstow
<p>Opening the Punjab innings, Bairstow put on 93 runs with impact sub Prabhsimran Singh (54) and another 85 runs with Rilee Rossouw (26). </p>AFP
7/10:Sunil Narine
<p>Prabhsimran was run out by a direct throw from Sunil Narine who also chipped in with the wicket of Rossouw in the 13th over. </p>PTI
8/10:Big shots unleashed
<p>Despite the two dismissals, Shashank continued to unleash big shots, making sure Punjab did not lose their nerve while chasing the big total. </p>AP
9/10:KKR openers
<p>Earlier, Kolkata got off to a blistering start with Phil Salt and Narine sharing 138 runs off just 69 balls for the first wicket after being put in to bat. </p>PTI
