DHARAMSALA:
Owners Kolkata Knight Riders lived a batting barrage counting six straight sixes from Rajasthan Royals skipper Riyan Parag to win a high-scoring IPL thriller by one run on Sunday.
In the day’s second match, Rishabh Pant again wriggled to a little score as his Lucknow Super Giants team drooping to a fourth overthrow in five IPL games, behind by 37 runs to the Punjab Kings.
Parag went on the dose as Rajasthan, chasing 207 for victory, slid to 71-5. He struck 95 off 45 balls and hit six sixes in six consecutive legal balls — a first in IPL — crossways two overs.
The 23-year-old’s barrage, which included an extensive in between the fourth and fifth six, started with him spanking England spinner Moeen Ali for five sixes in an over. Formerly, after his partner Shimron Hetmyer took a sole, he hit one over the barrier off Varun Chakravarthy.
Parag joined a select list of batters to have hit five sixes in an over in the IPL after Chris Gayle (2012), Rahul Tewatia (2020), Ravindra Jadeja (2021) and Rinku Singh (2023).
Parag, who is important the team in the lack of regular skipper Sanju Samson, added 92 with Hetmyer, but after their leavings Rajasthan ended on 205-8 after a tense last over.
Requiring 22 to win in the final over, influence substitute Shubham Dubey, a left-hand batter, hit two sixes and a four off Vaibhav Arora who fortified three on the final ball with a run out of Jofra Archer as KKR renowned.
“I was just also sad about myself getting out,” said Parag. “Perhaps an error from my side. I should have ended it.”
Kolkata endure in the search for the play-offs with their fifth victory in 11 matches. Rajasthan are now out of the final-four race. The top four teams from the league stage will move into the play-offs. Andre Russell set up victory for three-time champions Kolkata as he hit form with his undefeated 57 off 25 balls to steer Kolkata to 206-4
