Kolkata: Left-arm wrist-spinner Noor Ahmad picked an exceptional 4-31 to help Chennai Super Kings (CSK) restrict Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to 179/6 in their 20 overs in match 57 of IPL 2025 at the Eden Gardens on Wednesday.
On a slow pitch, KKR skipper Ajinkya Rahane top-scored with 48 off 33 balls while Andre Russell and Sunil Narine chipped in with 38 and 26 respectively. But CSK’s spin-squeeze, led by Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Noor’s four-fer ensured KKR did not cross 180-run mark.
Electing to bat first, Rahmanullah Gurbaz hit a four and six, before flicking straight to midwicket off Anshul Kamboj. Rahane came in to hit three quick boundaries, before Narine hit him for three fours and a six in the power-play, which KKR ended with 67/1.
But shortly after, Narine went for a big hoick, and was beaten on it by Noor, with MS Dhoni whipping off the bails quickly and was out for 26 off 17 balls. Noor then took out Angkrish Raghuvanshi, by having him caught behind by Dhoni off a superb googly. As a result, overs 7-10 didn’t yield any boundary for KKR.
In a bid to hit out against Jadeja, Rahane went for a reverse-sweep, but was caught by backward point for 48 off 33 balls. Russell came in to hit Jadeja for two fours and a six, before hitting a four and six each off Matheesha Pathirana. Russell also took out Noor for six and four, before the spinner had the big-hitting batter holing out for 38 off 21 balls.
Noor then came in the final over to have Rinku Singh pull straight to deep backward square leg. Pathirana then conceded only six singles in the final over, as CSK’s troika of spinners took a combined 5-84 in 11 overs, with Manish Pandey being unbeaten on 36 off 28 balls.
Brief Scores: Kolkata Knight Riders 179/6 in 20 overs (Ajinkya Rahane 48, Andre Russell 38; Noor Ahmad 4-31, Ravindra Jadeja 1-34) against Chennai Super Kings
