Agency
Kolkata: A clinical Kolkata Knight Riders handed Delhi Daredevils a nine-wicket drubbing to begin their Indian Premier League campaign in style here on Sunday.
Knight Riders shot out a lacklustre Delhi for 98 before cantering home in 14.1 overs with openers skipper Gautam Gambhir (38 not out) and Robin Uthappa (35) sharing a brisk 69-run stand.
Andre Russell (3/24) and 45-year-old Brad Hogg (3/19) were the star bowlers for the home team
after Gambhir put the
opposition in.
While the two-time champions made an ideal start to the season, a fresh squad, mentored by Rahul Dravid, did not change the fortunes of Delhi who finished seventh out of eight teams in 2015.
Cricket returned to Eden Gardens on the same strip exactly a week after West Indies rode on Carlos Brathwaite six-hitting heroics to lift their second World Twenty20 title and the 25,000-odd Knights fans could not have a better start for Knight Riders, the two-time champions.
Gambhir and Uthappa made batting look easy during the chase as the team completed a convincing win. Gambhir was solid in his 41-ball knock, collecting five fours while Uthappa smashed seven boundaries including a couple of delightful straight drives. Earlier, a brilliant bowling effort enabled Knight Riders to dismiss Daredevils for a paltry total. Pacers Russell and John Hastings (2/6) triggered the collapse before the spin duo of Hogg and Piyush Chawla (2/21) came to the party.
Put in, Delhi Daredevils raced to 24 in just 13 balls with Knight Riders having some initial hiccups. (PTI)
score board
Delhi Daredevils innings
MA Agarwal c Hogg b Russell 9
Q de Kock† c Pathan b Russell 17
SS Iyer lbw b Russell 0
KK Nair c Pandey b Hastings 3
SV Samson c †Uthappa b Hogg 15
P Negi st †Uthappa b Hogg 11
CR Brathwaite lbw b Chawla 6
CH Morris b Chawla 11
NM Coulter-Nile not out 7
A Mishra c Gambhir b Hogg 3
Z Khan* c Pandey b Hastings 4
Extras 12
Total 98/10
Kolkata Knight Riders innings
RV Uthappa† c Morris b Mishra 35
G Gambhir* not out 38
MK Pandey not out 15
Extras 11
