Captain Morgan, bowlers beat Monday blues to get past Punjab Kings
Ahmedabad, Apr 26: Skipper Eoin Morgan brought in a sense of calm after early jitters as Kolkata Knight Riders didn't let a brilliant bowling performance go in vain during their easy five-wicket victory over Punjab Kings in an IPL encounter on Monday.
After the bowlers put up a splendid show to restrict Punjab Kings to 123 for 9, KKR scored the runs in 16.4 overs with skipper Morgan remaining unbeaten on 47 off 40 balls.
For KKR, it was a collective bowling performance with Prasidh Krishna (3/30), Pat Cummins (2/31) and Sunil Narine (2/22) choked Punjab after the young Shivam Mavi (1/13) bowled an astounding 15 dot balls in his four over spell.
KKR has now ended their four-match losing streak and are placed fifth with four points from six games. Punjab Kings slipped a notch behind and are now at sixth place.
Chasing the paltry target on a dew-laden Motera, KKR found themselves in familiar territory as they lost top-three for 17 runs inside three overs.
But Morgan (4x4, 2x6) showed perfect intent to seize control with Rahul Tripathi in a 66-run partnership off 48 balls as KKR sealed the issue in 16.4 overs to return to winning ways.
Morgan pulled Shami over square to get off the mark with a maximum and there was no looking back.
He along with Tripathi used their feet and kept charging the Punjab bowlers as they just needed 48 runs in the final-10.
Tripathi could not finish it after an impressive 32-ball 41 as there was a bit of a blip with Andre Russell departing in addition of 15 runs but Morgan and Dinesh Karthik ensured that there's no further damage to cruise home with 20 balls to spare.
Earlier, Rana got out for a golden duck in the first over, gifting his wicket to Moises Henriques, chipping a wide full toss straight to Shahrukh Khan at cover.
Then the Indian cricket's blue-eyed boy, Gill, continued his woeful run after showing some glimpses of his class, trapped by Mohammed Shami.
Ravi Bishnoi then produced a spectacular diving catch, sprinting about 30 metres to dismiss Sunil Narine for a duck.
Earlier, youngster Mavi started it all, tying things down with the new ball, bowling 15 dot balls in his four overs on the trot, before Cummins and Prasidh tightened the noose sharing five wickets between them at the death.
The pace troika removed the top three KL Rahul (19), Chris Gayle (0) and Deepak Hooda (1) in space of 12 balls for six runs to leave PBKS in a disarray in the first 10 overs.
On a pitch, where the ball stayed low and gripped a bit, the Punjab batsmen failed to apply themselves with Sunil Narine (2/22) and Varun Chakravarthy (1/24) further denting their progress during the middle overs as well as back-end.
Prasidh had the best figures as he ended Chris Jordan's 18-ball 30 cameo which took the total past the 120-run mark.
Mavi capped a fine opening spell of four overs dismissing Chris Gayle for a golden duck with the 'Universe Boss' taking a bottom edge.
Bowling with the new ball, the youngster was superb in the Powerplay, conceding just nine runs from his three overs, never allowing the two star Punjab openers, Mayank Agarwal and KL Rahul, to express themselves.
The pressure was evident on Rahul when he perished after trying to break free against Cummins in the final over of Powerplay.
The dangerous Deepak Hooda (1) got out courtesy a stunning low catch by Eoin Morgan as Punjab had a terrible start losing three wickets in 12 balls for six runs.
Amid ruins, opener Mayank Agarwal scored a painstaking 31 off 34 balls which also halted the team's momentum.
At that point, Morgan used Narine to great effect as the Trinidadian dismissed Agarwal and Moises Henriques in successive overs to push them behind further.
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JioHotstar to invest Rs 4,000 crore for South Indian content push; unveils 25-title slate
Chennai (PTI): Streaming service JioHotstar on Tuesday announced that it will invest Rs 4,000 crore over the next five years to strengthen South India’s creative economy, unveiling a 25-title slate as part of a major push for regional content.
In one of the biggest announcements by an Indian streaming platform for the southern markets, the company showcased its “South Unbound” vision at a high-profile event here.
Sushant Sreeram, Head – SVOD Business & Chief Marketing Officer at JioStar, said the investment forms part of a broader collaboration with the Tamil Nadu government.
“Earlier today, JioHotstar formalised a Letter of Intent with the Government of Tamil Nadu in the presence of the Chief Minister M K Stalin. This outlines a shared commitment to invest in talent, expand infrastructure and build a future-ready creative economy from the South.
"As part of this vision, JioHotstar will invest Rs 4,000 crore to nurture creators, strengthen the production ecosystem and build a pipeline of stories that are ready for India and ready for the world,” he said.
Calling South India the “heartbeat of Indian storytelling”, Sreeram said the investment signalled the platform’s long-term commitment to local creators.
"JioHotstar started as a dream — to build entertainment rooted in India’s storytelling heritage and powered by cutting-edge technology. The resplendent storytelling traditions of the South motivate us to keep championing authentic, rooted narratives while offering greater accessibility and choices for every viewer," he said.
The event was attended by Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin, veteran actor and MP Kamal Haasan, senior state officials, and leading stars and filmmakers from across the southern industries.
Deputy CM Stalin said the partnership will generate “1,000 direct jobs and 15,000 indirect jobs”.
“Cinema in Tamil Nadu has always been a force for social change. OTT is not replacing cinema; it is expanding it. Today, a filmmaker in Madurai or Salem can upload a story and reach audiences across the world. The cultural and economic impact of this partnership will be massive," he added.
aasan said Indian media and entertainment was undergoing a fundamental transformation driven not by technology alone, but by the audience itself.
“We gather at a moment when India’s media and entertainment is not merely growing, it is transforming. For the first time, this shift is not driven by device or format, but by the audience itself,” he said, adding that storytelling today is “screen agnostic”.
“Regional is becoming the new national, and ethnic the new international. Stories born in Madurai, Malappuram or Machilipatnam are no longer regional cinema; they are national cultural events,” Haasan said, giving the example of movies such as “Kantara”, “Drishyam”, “Baahubali”, “Pushpa” and Tamil hits like “Vikram”.
The event was also attended by Mohanlal, Nagarjuna, Vijay Sethupathi, Priyamani, Aishwarya Rajesh and others -- along with directors Jeethu Joseph and Ahammed Khabeer
The streamer's ambitious content slate, unveiled as part of its “South Unbound” initiative, includes sequels to blockbuster franchises, new long-format shows, films, adaptations, and high-engagement reality formats.
The Tamil slate features a mix of returning favourites and new originals, led by "Bigg Boss Tamil", now hosted by Vijay Sethupathi, and "Good Wife S2", the legal drama starring Priyamani.
The lineup also includes "LBW – Love Beyond Wicket", a relationship drama; the family comedy "Cousins and Kalyanams"; the psychological drama "Resort"; and "Heartbeat S3", which brings back Anumol, Karthik Kumar and Deepa Balu.
Other Tamil offerings include "Lingam", an action-drama; "Love Always", a multigenerational love story; the marquee title "Kaattaan" starring Vijay Sethupathi and Milind Soman; and "Second Love", a non-fiction relationship series.
In Telugu, the platform returns with "Bigg Boss Telugu" hosted by Nagarjuna, alongside new originals such as "Moodu Lantharlu" starring Aishwarya Rajesh; the police procedural "Vikram on Duty"; "Varam", a mystical relationship drama; and the hit comedy-drama "Save The Tigers S3" with Chaitanya Krishna.
The slate further includes "Vishakha", the Telugu adaptation of "Aarya" led by Kajal Aggarwal; the relationship-based non-fiction format "Mad for Each Other"; and the Telugu debut of the iconic adventure franchise "Roadies".
From Malayalam, the platform brings back "Bigg Boss Malayalam" hosted by Mohanlal; "Kerala Crime Files S3" featuring Aju Varghese; the mystery drama "Secret Stories: Roslin"; "Anali", "1000 Babies S2" with Neena Gupta and Rahman; and the hard-hitting drama "Pharma" starring Nivin Pauly.
The Kannada lineup includes "Bigg Boss Kannada" hosted by Kichcha Sudeepa; "Batchmates", a nostalgic friendship drama; and the food-and-humour-based non-fiction series "Comedy Cooks".
Across languages, the platform also announced new films such as "Lucky The Superstar", featuring GV Prakash, Anaswara Rajan and Meghna Sumesh, and "Kenatha Kaanom", positioned as broad-appeal mainstream entertainers.
