Kolkata, Mar 27: Andre Russell's second consecutive blistering knock made all the difference as Kolkata Knight Riders beat Kings XI Punjab by 28 runs in their IPL match here on Wednesday.

Russell, who hit a sensational 19-ball 49 against Sunrisers Hyderabad in KKR's previous match, bludgeoned his way to a 17-ball 48 to propel the home side to a massive 218 for 4 after being sent into bat. He later took two wickets for 21 runs to help KKR restrict KXIP to 190 for 4 and emerge as the undisputed star of the match.

When on three, Russell was yorked by Mohammed Shami off the last delivery of the 17th over but to the horror of KXIP, the umpire signalled a no-ball as the visiting team was found to have one fielder short of the mandatory four inside the 30-yard circle.

The 30-year-old Russell made full use of the reprieve as he hammered five sixes and three fours from the next 11 balls he faced to send the Eden Gardens crowd berserk. He was dismissed in the final over.

KKR made 56 runs in 19 balls after the no-ball incident to score their highest IPL total at Eden Gardens. The KKR innings was lashed with 17 sixes.

Russell though was not the top-scorer for KKR. Robin Uthappa took that honour, remaining not out on 67 off 50 balls while Nitish Rana was the one who set the Eden Gardens on fire before Russell came out with a 34-ball 63.

The much-anticipated contest between two big-hitting Jamaicans from the rival teams, however, ended in a damp squib with Russell winning hands down against his much senior compatriot Chris Gayle.

The 'Universe Boss' Gayle was out in the fifth over of the KXIP run chase with a small contribution of 20 off 13 deliveries. The Punjab side were in deep trouble early on as Lokesh Rahul (1) was also out cheaply before Gayle in the second over.

It was left to Mayank Agarwal and David Miller to bring back KXIP into the game. The duo did well, raising 50 runs in 4.9 overs and stealing 19 runs from the 12th over bowled by Sunil Narine.

But soon they found the target to be too stiff and by the end of the 15th over, the asking had risen to 17.2 runs an over.

Agarwal was out in the 16th over for 53 off 34 deliveries while Miller stayed unbeaten for a 40-ball 59 not out with the help of five fours and three sixes as KXIP fell short by 28 runs in the end.

There was also some drama in store in the sixth over when the game was halted for a while with KKR skipper Dinesh Karthik and Robin Uthappa engaging in an animated discussion with the umpires after KXIP were awarded five runs from an overthrow.

Earlier, playing his first match after the 'Mankading' controversy, Kings XI skipper Ravichandran Ashwin found the going tough after he opted to bowl with Sunil Narine unleashing the fury early on with a nine-ball 24.

Rana, who struck his consecutive half century, took Ashwin to task, hitting the India off-spinner for two sixes and continued his assault on Mandeep Singh in the next over with successive sixes.

Such was Rana's fury that his next 41 runs came off just 13 balls as he along with Uthappa made a spectacular 110-run third wicket partnership off just 66 balls.

Varun Chakravarthy (1/35), who fetched the joint-highest bid price of Rs 8.4 in the IPL auctions, found it tough in his debut match as Narine smashed him for three sixes and a boundary in his first over.

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New Delhi, Dec 27: The Congress on Friday said that not finding a location for the cremation and memorial for Manmohan Singh is a deliberate insult to the country's first Sikh prime minister.

The Congress raked up the issue after the Union home ministry said in a statement that Singh's last rites will be held at New Delhi's Nigambodh Ghat at 11:45 AM on Saturday with full state honours.

Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said party president Mallikarjun Kharge wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging him to conduct Singh's last rites at a location where a memorial could be built to honour his legacy.

"The people of our country are simply unable to understand why the Government of India could not find a location for his cremation and memorial that is befitting of his global stature, record of outstanding achievements, and exemplary service to the nation for decades," Ramesh said in a post on X.

"This is nothing but a deliberate insult to the first Sikh Prime Minister of India, Dr. Manmohan Singh," the Congress leader said.

Kharge wrote the letter after speaking to Modi about setting up a memorial for Singh, who was a two-term prime minister revered by the people of the country.

"Apropos our telephonic conversation today morning, wherein I made a request to hold Dr Manmohan Singh's last rites, which will take place tomorrow i.e. 28th December 2024, at his final resting place that would be a sacrosanct venue for memorial of the great son of India.

"This is in keeping with such tradition of having memorials of statesmen and former Prime Ministers at the very place of their funerals," Kharge said in his two-page letter.

The Congress chief said Dr Manmohan Singh holds a highly revered place in the psyche of the country and the people of this nation, and his contributions and achievements were phenomenal.

He also said that Dr Singh's erudition on economic and fiscal matters came from his vast experience as the governor of the Reserve Bank of India, chief economic advisor to the government of India and in various other capacities in several organisations, and the respect and regard that world leaders had for him bears testimony to this fact.

Kharge said Singh's wise counsel, leadership and contribution in mitigating the global economic financial crisis is well-acknowledged. He also recalled President Obama's words when as the US president, he mentioned that "whenever the Indian prime minister speaks, the whole world listens to him".

He also said that when the nation was in the throes of a grave economic crisis, it was Dr Manmohan Singh, along with former prime minister P V Narasimha Rao, who took India out of the crisis and also led the country towards economic prosperity and stability.

The nation today reaps the benefits of the robust economic foundations built by them, Kharge noted.

"Coming from a humble background and having experienced the pains and sufferings of the Partition, it is through his sheer grit and determination that he rose to become one of the leading statesmen of the world. I hope and trust that befitting stature of Dr Manmohan Singh, request to have the funeral of Dr Singh at a place where his memorial can be built, will be acceded," Kharge said in the letter.

Congress Legislature Party leader in Punjab assembly Pratap Singh Bajwa also separately urged Prime Minister Modi to have Manmohan Singh's funeral at a place where a memorial could be built later in his honour.

"I urge Prime Minister @narendramodi to honour Dr Manmohan Singh, one of the most towering Sikhs of modern times, with a memorial befitting his immense contributions to our nation. Rising from humble beginnings in a historic state, representing a community that has always stood steadfast for India's unity and progress, Dr Singh's life is a testament to intellect, integrity, and selfless service," he posted on X.

Bajwa said Punjabis across faiths and political lines unite in their heartfelt plea to recognise this son of Punjab, who played an instrumental role in shaping India's destiny, with the respect he deserves.

Shiromani Akali Dal leader Sukhbir Singh Badal claimed the Centre has "declined" the request of Manmohan Singh's family for performing the funeral and last rites at a place where an appropriate memorial may be built.

There is no official word from the government on Kharge's request.

However, Badal took to X to post, "Shocking and unbelievable! It is condemnable in the extreme that Union Govt has declined the request of Dr Manmohan Singh Ji's family for performing the funeral and last rites of the highly distinguished leader at a place where an appropriate and historic memorial may be built to commemorate his unparalleled services to the nation."

He further said this place should be Raj Ghat.

"This will be in keeping with the settled practice and tradition followed in the past," Badal said.

He said it is "inexplicable" why the government is "showing such disrespect to the great leader who was the only member of the Sikh community to rise to become the Prime Minister".

"As of now, the cremation is slated to be performed at the common cremation ground at Nigambodh ghat. I am unable to believe that the BJP govt's bias would go to such extremes in utter disregard of the towering global stature which Dr Manmohan Singh ji enjoyed and will always enjoy," Badal further said in his post.

He said Singh took the country to great international heights.

"Our political differences with the Congress apart, we have always held Dr Manmohan Singh in the highest esteem as he transcends politics and political affiliations. He belongs to the entire nation.

"Dr Sahib showed great sensitivity and compassion in his dealings with Shiromani Akali Dal over Sikh and Punjab issues," said Badal urging Modi to "intervene personally to change this deplorable decision of the government".

Singh passed away on Thursday night at Delhi's All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) at the age of 92.