And that’s all from me. It’s been a blast. Bye!
Rajasthan Royals are in the play-offs!
And Kolkata Knight Riders are almost certainly out! A fine match, with some excellent performances – and some really dreadful bowling and fielding. Congratulations, Royals!
Rajasthan Royals win by nine runs!
20 overs: Kolkata Knight Riders 190-9 (U Yadav 24, Morkel 4)
A slow, full delivery is deflected to midwicket and the batsmen run a single. Excellent bowling from Morris to finish the match!
19.5 overs: Kolkata Knight Riders 189-9 (U Yadav 24, Morkel 3)
Yadav smacks the ball hard to Smith at long off, and can only take a single. The Royals are going to win this!
19.4 overs: Kolkata Knight Riders 188-9 (U Yadav 23, Morkel 3)
Morkel digs out a yorker and runs a single. KKR need 12 runs from two balls if they’re to win this.
19.3 overs: Kolkata Knight Riders 187-9 (U Yadav 23, Morkel 2)
Morkel carts this through midwicket, where the fielders are spread and deep, and runs two!
19.2 overs: Kolkata Knight Riders 185-9 (U Yadav 23, Morkel 0)
Yadav hits low and hard to long on, and runs a single.
WICKET! Shakib c Smith b Morris 13 (KKR 184-9)
19.1 overs: Shakib’s gone, trying to hit out the ground and getting caught by Smith at long on!
19th over: Kolkata Knight Riders 184-8 (Shakib 13, U Yadav 22)
This isn’t over yet! Faulkner bowls wide and short, and Yadav cracks it past point for four! And then he whacks the next over long on, a long way over long on, for six. Then there’s a wide – really, these guys need a real talking-to – before Yadav smacks through the covers for four, and then does it again for another! That’s 22 off nine balls for Yadav! KKR need 16 from the final over, having got 20 off that one!
18th over: Kolkata Knight Riders 164-8 (Shakib 12, U Yadav 4)
Watson completes his allocation. After two singles and a wicket, Yadav smacks his first delivery down the ground for four. He then just about gets his bat to a yorker, before Watson bowls another wide – heck, why not? They need 36 runs from 12 balls, at three runs a ball, or 18 an over.
WICKET! Charla c Binny b Watson 0 (KKR 159-8)
Well that looks like curtains! Charla gets a thick edge, and Binny takes the catch at point!
17th over: Kolkata Knight Riders 157-7 (Shakib 11, Chawla 0)
Faulkner’s over also starts with two wides, like the first two of Watson’s down the off side. These gifts really are unacceptable, even if they might just get away with them.
WICKET! Mahmood c Rahane b Faulkner 6 (KKR 156-7)
Time and wickets are running out now for KKR! Mahmood hits the ball high, high into the air, and Rahane at long on keeps his eyes on the ball and then gets his hands on it too!
16th over: Kolkata Knight Riders 151-6 (Shakib 9, Mahmood 4)
Watson bowls full and wide at Pathan, which is a nice enough idea, except his radar is slightly off-beam, and the first two have the umpire extending his arms. But he keeps at it, and it brings a dot ball, and then a wicket, celebrated by the fielding side like the winning goal in a cup final! There’s still time for another wide – the 21st extra of the innings, when Royals got 10 in theirs – before Mahmood cracks the ball through midwicket for four, the only runs of the over that weren’t wides. KKR need 49 from four overs at 12.25 an over!
WICKET! Pathan c Kolkarni b Watson 44 (KKR 146-6)
That’s a big moment! Pathan tries to clear the boundary but picks out the fielder at deep extra cover!
15th over: Kolkata Knight Riders 144-5 (Pathan 44, Shakib 9)
The first four deliveries of Kulkarni’s final over of the day bring three singles, so Shakib pretty much has to hit the fifth pretty hard. He does, through midwicket for four, and then he reverse-flicks the last just past the fielder at short third man for another! At this stage, the Royals were 146-4 – it’s pretty much neck and neck. KKR need 56 from five overs at 11.2 apiece.
14th over: Kolkata Knight Riders 133-5 (Pathan 42, Shakib 0)
What an over from Chris Morris! Two runs, and two wickets! The Riders badly needed to see the back of Andre Russell, before matters got out of hand. Suryakumar Yadav watches Pathan score a single, and then gets out at the earliest possible opportunity. KKR need 11.2 runs an over from here on in.
WICKET! S Yadav c Samson b Morris 0 (KKR 133-5)
Yadav goes first ball! It’s a corker of a delivery, takes a little nick and Samson collects it behind the stumps! Is this the match swinging here?
WICKET! Russell c Kulkarni b Morris 37 (KKR 132-4)
Russell looks for another six, and is caught by Kulkarni at deep extra cover!
13th over: Kolkata Knight Riders 131-3 (Pathan 40, Russell 37)
There’s a bit of a delay before the over starts, as Yusuf Pathan gets treated for cramp, and a further delay after it begins, when Andre Russell hits the ball out of the ground. Russell is stomping all over Brainder Sran’s debut, and he thrashes the ball through the covers for a violent four, and the next slips out of his hand and flies way wide. By the time the over ends 15 runs have been scored.
12th over: Kolkata Knight Riders 116-3 (Pathan 38, Russell 26)
Watson bowls, and his first delivery is clubbed back past his head for four by Russell. The next is slashed towards Faulkner at third man, but lands a couple of feet in front of him. The next is wide, and speared into the air again, this time by Pathan, and lands safe again! That brings Russell back on strike, and he absolutely pummels the ball over extra cover for a massive six. He tries to repeat the dose next ball, misses it completely, and punches himself in frustration. The Royals need a wicket, ideally Russell’s, though either would be nice.
11th over: Kolkata Knight Riders 103-3 (Pathan 37, Russell 14)
Faulkner, whose first over brought 13 runs – many of them down to terrible fielding – has another go. There’s a catch dropped here, but Faulkner has nobody to blame but himself – it was a sharp caught-and-bowled chance, and the ball didn’t stick in his palm. Five singles and a wide from the over.
10th over: Kolkata Knight Riders 97-3 (Pathan 35, Russell 11)
Stuart Binny does some bowling, and Pathan tucks into it. Medium-pace short balls aren’t going to bother him, and he pulls his way to consecutive boundaries. The next is full, Pathan swings at it and there seemed to be a sound as it passed the bat, but the umpire wasn’t impressed by the subsequent appeals. Ten runs from the over, and at the halfway stage KKR are 10 runs behind the Riders, and have lost two more wickets, but victory remains within their grasp here.
9th over: Kolkata Knight Riders 87-3 (Pathan 26, Russell 10)
Russell gets off the mark in fluky style, squared up by the delivery, he gets a thin outside edge and it races away for four. There’s nothing lucky about the next, hammered through midwicket for four more.
WICKET! Pandey c Morris b Kulkarni 21 (KKR 77-3)
Manish Pandey, having scored 21 runs from 21 balls, hits the first delivery of Kulkarni’s third over straight to Morris at cover!
Kulkarni you beauty! New spell and it begins with a wicket as Pandey plays it right down Morris' throat at cover. #AlwaysARoyal #RR
— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) May 16, 2015
8th over: Kolkata Knight Riders 77-2 (Pandey 21, Pathan 26)
Watson has a go at bowling, and Pandey slaps a shortish delivery through midwicket for four. A single later, another short ball is similarly dispatched by Pathan. KKR are on track here, they could do this (and the Royals seem willing to help out).
7th over: Kolkata Knight Riders 66-2 (Pandey 15, Pathan 21)
Faulkner bowls, and Pathan hooks in the air to the long leg boundary, where two fielders try to catch the ball, miss it and run into each other. At the end of it Deepak Hooda looks pretty sore, Pathan has six runs, and the impression that the Royals are trying to throw this away grows a little stronger. Pathan hits the next in the air towards deep cover, Binny runs in to take the catch and dives over the ball, which bounces underneath him and away for four. Really, this is terrible, terrible fieldsmanship. The next is worked to long off, where Smith collects and throws at the bowler’s end – a direct hit would have run Pandey out, but Faulkner could also have caught the ball and done it himself. He missed it.
6th over: Kolkata Knight Riders 53-2 (Pandey 13, Pathan 10)
They’ve done it again! Another short ball, from Kulkarni this time, flies out of Samson’s reach and away for five wides. Ludicrous. And then they give away another run in overthrows. There’s going to be a time out now, and someone needs to knock some heads together.
5th over: Kolkata Knight Riders 44-2 (Pandey 12, Pathan 7)
The Royals need to turn the screw here, rather than opening the tap. Morris starts his over with a wide, and then the next was heading over leg stump until Pathan deflects it to deep fine leg for four. He stops the rot, though, with a couple of singles and a leg bye following, plus a fully delivery that shapes away from Pathan.
4th over: Kolkata Knight Riders 36-2 (Pandey 12, Pathan 1)
Brainder Sran continues, and Pandey cuts past point for four, and then clubs just past a diving mid on for another! The bowler tries to end the over with a bouncer, but it’s banged in too short, rears up off the pitch and flies way over batsman and wicketkeeper and off for four byes.
3rd over: Kolkata Knight Riders 21-2 (Pandey 3, Pathan 0)
Kulkarni bowls and Uthappa finds the cover boundary again, this time with considerably less force – it doesn’t take much here. A couple of singles later, though, he’s gone.
Yes. Yes. Yes! Kulkarni traps Uthappa and Smithy makes no mistake with the catch! 2 down for KKR. #RR #AlwaysARoyal
— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) May 16, 2015
WICKET! Uthappa c Smith b Kulkarni 14 (KKR 21-2)
Again, the wicket falls from the final ball of the over. Uthappa misjudges it completely, hitting limply to mid off, where Smith takes the most straightforward of catches!
2nd over: Kolkata Knight Riders 14-1 (Uthappa 10, Pandey 1)
Brainder Sran, the debutant, is thrown straight into the action. Pandey tries a cover drive, brilliantly stopped by Hooda, diving to his right, and the over goes splendidly well for the new boy until Uthappa finds the gap that Pandey couldn’t and sends the final ball racing to the cover boundary.
1st over: Kolkata Knight Riders 8-1 (Uthappa 5, Pandey 0)
Morris bowls the first over, and his very first delivery moves away from Uthappa and flies just past the edge. His second is much less impressive, flying down the leg side. A little later, Uthappa siezes on a wide delivery, slamming it through the covers for four. And then, the wicket.
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WICKET! Gambhir c Binny b Morris 1 (KKR 8-1)
The final ball of the first over prompts Gambhir into a pull, and the ball flies off the edge, into the air, and down into the hands of Binny at square leg. Over to KKR’s stating-the-obvious dept:
And Gautam Gambir gets out! This is not a very good news for us! RRvsKKR #Go4More
— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) May 16, 2015
The players are back out now. Let’s do this.
KKR’s highest total of this year’s IPL was 184. They need to beat that by 16 tonight, or they’re out.
The stage is set, though, for a really entertaining run chase. Which should start any minute now …
A superb innings from Watson, tinged very slightly with sadness because he and Rahane were really motoring, and could have done something special had they just stuck together.
20 overs: Rajasthan Royals 199-6 (Watson 104 not out)
Umesh Yadav takes the final over, and the first ball is carved to backward point for four, completing his century. It isn’t the precursor to some wild final-over run-accumulation, though – the next three bring singles, before Morris misses the fifth entirely. He hits the last to square leg and gets run out returning for a second run, leaving the Royals one short of 200, and wondering what they might have got had Rahane, in particular, stuck around a little longer.
19th over: Rajasthan Royals 191-5 (Watson 98, Morris 2)
Morkel’s final over starts with a yorker, from which Watson gets a single. KKR send third man back to the rope for Morris’s first delivery, which is diverted straight to him. Enough messing about, thinks Watson, who heaves over deep square leg for a genuinely massive six. The batsmen take a single each, leaving Watson on strike for the final ball, three runs from his hundred. He picks out a fielder at deep cover, and takes another single.
18th over: Rajasthan Royals 180-5 (Watson 89, Morris 0)
Umesh Yadav bowls, and after Watson smacks the first to long off, picking out the fielder, for one, Karun edges safely for four, and a couple of singles later gets four more, giving himself some space and paddling just past the stumps – really very close to the stumps. Reprieved, he gets out next ball.
WICKET! Karun Nair c Uthappa b Yadav 16 (Rajasthan Royals 180-5)
Karun takes a big swing at the final ball of Yadav’s over and gets the slightest of very audible nicks!
17th over: Rajasthan Royals 169-4 (Watson 87, Karun 6)
Mahmood starts his over with a no ball, which is not only smashed to the boundary at deep cover but also yields a free hit, a slower ball that Watson picks up perfectly, and smacks down the ground. So the Royals effectively score 11 runs from the first ball of the over. The batsmen exchange singles, and then Watson drives another slower delivery through the covers for four. Karun faces the final delivery, probably the slowest yet, and he doesn’t pick the pace at all, heaving across the line and missing the ball entirely.
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16th over: Rajasthan Royals 151-4 (Watson 71, Karun 6)
Royals reach 150, Morkel helping them to the mark with a wide. Watson took a wild slash at it – and the next – without making contact. Karun slashes the final delivery of the over to mid off, where Mahmood collects the ball, and then drops it again! It was a tough chance, to be fair, low and fast, but still, a drop’s a drop.
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15th over: Rajasthan Royals 146-4 (Watson 68, Karun 5)
Russell bowls short and wide, and Faulkner leans back and heaves between mid on and midwicket for four. The next ball is also short, and Faulkner leaves it alone before getting out from the third. Karun Nair’s first ball is also short, heading towards his neck, so he leans back and just helps the ball on, and gets four runs for his troubles.
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WICKET! Faulkner c S Yadav b Russell 6 (Rajasthan Royals 140-4)
Faulkner tries to heave the bowl over cow corner, but doesn’t quite get enough on it, and it’s caught a few yards from the rope!
14th over: Rajasthan Royals 136-3 (Watson 67, Faulkner 2)
Shakib bowls, and after Faulkner gets off the mark with a single, Watson diverts one past point for four. There’s also a hapless wide full toss that Watson can’t reach – he can certainly reach the next, though, and it disappears over the bowler’s head for six!
13th over: Rajasthan Royals 122-3 (Watson 56, Faulkner 0)
The momentum seems to be seeping out of this innings a little, with the Royals guilty of two self-inflicted wounds, and the two overs before this going for four each. Samson smashes through midwicket for four here, but then he’s out next ball. Don’t get me wrong, the Royals are still on course for a more than decent total, and Faulkner’s got the potential to get things back on track, but without the run out and Smith’s gift, this could have been a really beautiful thing.
WICKET! Samson c Gambhir b Rusell 8 (Rajasthan Royals 122-3)
Samson tries to hit high over midwicket, gets a leading edge and the ball drops into the hands of Gambhir at point!
12th over: Rajasthan Royals 114-2 (Watson 53, Samson 4)
Shakib’s back, and Samson nurdles his first delivery ultra-fine and runs three in the time Yusuf takes to catch it, stop it, stop himself and return it. The over brings only four runs.
11th over: Rajasthan Royals 111-2 (Watson 52, Samson 1)
Smith has to swerve at the last moment as he realises he’s about to run into Russell, and seems to hurt himself in the process, spending the next minute or so rubbing the small of his back. Perhaps he was still distracted by his back-ouch when he got out moments later, because that ball should have ended up in the stands. Shame, because had that wicket not fallen the Royals would be 111-1 after 11, and wouldn’t that have been nice?
WICKET! Smith c Morkel b Russell 14 (Rajasthan Royals 110-2)
He is indeed out! And it’s another gift from the Royals, Smith hitting a full toss straight to Morkel at fine leg!
WICKET? Is Steve Smith out here?
Of did the ball reach him above waist height? Morkel takes the catch, but Smith doesn’t want to go.
10th over: Rajasthan Royals 107-1 (Watson 50, Smith 13)
Piyush Chawla bowls some spin, starting round the wicket with a wide. When he gives Watson a chance to actually hit the ball, he sends it high over long on for six, and he completes his half-century with a single off the last.
9th over: Rajasthan Royals 95-1 (Watson 42, Smith 11)
Andre Russell does some bowling, and he pitches one short, and Smith pulls it away, just past a desperately diving fielder at long leg, and away for four. He follows it with another, flicked through midwicket, as the runs keep flowing.
8th over: Rajasthan Royals 84-1 (Watson 40, Smith 2)
The first sane over of the match, from Shakib, brings four singles.
7th over: Rajasthan Royals 80-1 (Watson 38, Smith 0)
Wooof! Azhar Mahmood oversteps, surrendering a free hit to Rahane, who grasps the opportunity with two hands and a flailing bat, thundering the ball over cow corner for six! And the next is cut away for four! That leaves one final delivery to negotiate, and it’s sent through the covers. The batsmen run one, and Rahane sets off for a second, desperate to keep strike for over eight. Watson, though, doesn’t think it’s on, sends him back and Rahane’s stranded as the ball’s returned to the bowler’s end and the bails are whipped off! Disaster! Frankly, I’m gutted – I was enjoying that.
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WICKET! Rahane run out for 37! (Rajasthan Royals 80-1)
A brilliant innings, and a marvellous opening stand, is ripped apart needlessly from the final ball of the seventh over when everything was looking just grand!
6th over: Rajasthan Royals 66-0 (Rahane 25, Watson 37)
Shakib al Hasan bowls over six, and there’s some smart running as the batsmen twice grab two when one might have been expected. Then Watson seizes on a short ball, pulling just wide of deep midwicket for four, before sending the next into orbit somewhere over long off for six!
5th over: Rajasthan Royals 52-0 (Rahane 25, Watson 23)
Crikey, this pair are just tucking in here. They’ve sat down, stuffed the corner of the serviette down their necks and are gorging, big time. Looks like this is going to be a high-scorer – a true, reliable bounce and a fast outfield combining to make these conditions, green wicket or no, perfect for scoring. Nine runs from the over, including a vicious thwack past long off from Watto.
4th over: Rajasthan Royals 43-0 (Rahane 24, Watson 15)
Morkel continues, and his first ball is short and a fraction wide, and Rahane carves it just wide of backward point and away for four. The next goes close enough to third man for him to field it, a little desperately, and then the third is carefully deflected wide of Uthappa and very fine, for four more. Phenomenal stuff from the Royals!
3rd over: Rajasthan Royals 31-0 (Rahane 13, Watson 14)
Umesh Yadav’s first ball is smashed through the covers for four, a shot straight from the textbooks. It only went a couple of feet from a fielder, but he didn’t have time to get his hands down to it. The over ends with the ball slamming into Watson’s pad, but it was probably heading just wide of leg stump and the umpire’s not interested.
2nd over: Rajasthan Royals 23-0 (Rahane 11, Watson 8)
Morkel bowls from t’other end, and Rahane works the first to third man and sprints two, diving to be sure of getting home before the ball. A dot ball later the third is heading just down leg when it flicks a thigh pad and rolls away for four, and that’s not the end of the scoring – the last disappears high over point for six! Excellent start for the Royals!
1st over: Rajasthan Royals 9-0 (Rahane 1, Watson 8)
This is a very green wicket, very seam-friendly, and Azhar Mahmood is the first to bowl on it. Ajinkya Rahane gets a single, and then Watson drives through the covers very nicely indeed for four, and clips through midwicket very nicely indeed for another!
Royals have only won one of their last eight, though two of those didn’t end (one didn’t even start), and one was tied (they lost the super over), which perhaps explains why they’re chancing their arm on debutants at this most vital stage. Anyway, the players are out, let’s play!
Here’s the Royals team in novel graphical form.
Here's the official line up for the #Royals. Let's rock it tonight #Royals!! Halla Bol! #AlwaysARoyal #RR #RRvKKR pic.twitter.com/zuQwA8YzXH
— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) May 16, 2015
There’s a debut for 22-year-old left-armer Brainder Sran. Knight Riders bring Azhar Mahmood in for Sunil Narine.
3 changes from the last game. Pravin, Rajan and Ankit sit this one out while Binny, Kulkarni come in along with debutant Sran! #RR
— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) May 16, 2015
First blood to the home side – Rajasthan Royals win the toss and will bat first!
Hello world!
Well this is massive. Rajasthan Royals have to win to make the play-offs (and even then might miss out), while Kolkata Knight Riders know that defeat could well push them out of the play-off places. Both teams, in other words, must win.
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