Rinku blitz leads Kolkata to first win of IPL season

AFP | Kolkata

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Rinku Singh hit an unbeaten 53 to lead Kolkata Knight Riders to their first win of the IPL season as they beat Rajasthan Royals by four wickets in a low-scoring contest yesterday.

Rajasthan posted 155-9 as their batting faltered after 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi top-scored with 46 at Kolkata’s Eden Gardens. Kolkata, who had five defeats and one point from a rained-off game coming into the match, slipped to 5-2 and 85-6 before the left-handed Rinku steered the team home with two balls to spare.

Rinku smacked five fours and two sixes in his 34-ball knock and put on an unbeaten 76-run stand with number eight Anukul Roy, who made 29, to steer the team home.

The left-handed Roy kept calm with his senior partner as he hit a six off Jofra Archer in the 19th over and Kolkata needed nine from the final six balls.

Rinku, who was dropped on eight by Nandre Burger, hit two fours and a winning six as he raised his fifty to bring cheer to the dugout and home crowd. England pace bowler Archer had Tim Seifert bowled for a duck on the first ball of the chase and South Africa’s Burger dismissed skipper Ajinkya Rahane for nought to make it two down.

Kolkata’s big-buy Cameron Green looked fluent in his 27 off 13 balls but fell stumped off Ravi Bishnoi with wicketkeeper Dhruv Jurel making a wide collection and a back flip onto the stumps.