IPL 2018: KKR enter Qualifier 2, RR Crumble Under Pressure
Kolkata, May 23: Skipper Dinesh Karthik (52) led from the front as Andre Russell (49 not out), Piyush Chawla (2/24) and Kuldeep Yadav (1/18) starred with bat and ball to help Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) see off Rajasthan Royals (RR) by 25 runs and reach Qualifier 2 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) here on Wednesday.
KKR will now meet Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) here on Friday to decide who faces Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the final on Sunday.
Despite early hiccups, KKR posted 169/7 in 20 overs riding Russell's big hitting late on after Karthik had set the tone for the two-time champions at the Eden Gardens here.
In reply, Royals could manage 144/4 even after Sanju Samson's belligerent 38-ball 50, containing four fours and two sixes and captain Ajinkya Rahane (46; 41b 4x4 1x6) kept their team in the hunt with a 62-run partnership off 54 balls for the second wicket.
With 74 needed from 48 balls, chinaman Kuldeep got rid of Rahane in the 15th over with Chawla then sending Samson back after he brought up his half century in 37 balls.
With the required run rate climbing up and set batsmen out, Royals, who have a thin middle order, could never recover.
Rahul Tripathi (20; 13b; 1x4, 2x6) helped Royals to a brisk start by tonking Russell (0/22) for a six in the first over and thereafter smacking the usually economical Sunil Narine (0/39) for two back-to-back sixes in the fifth over.
Rahane looked in effervescent touch at the other end, pulling and cutting M. Prasidh Krishna flawlessly in the fourth over after surviving a review when he was given out lbw by the umpire off Chawla on 14, two overs earlier.
Royals were 47/0 inside five overs before Tripathi -- who also survived a review -- inexplicably chipped a googly back to Chawla for a soft dismissal.
In came Samson with the well-set Rahane batting and the duo looked on course to chase down 170 before they got out in quick succession and it was all downhill from there on.
Earlier, KKR rode on Karthik's well-paced fifty coupled with Russell's unbeaten 25-ball 49 blitz to recover from an early collapse.
Russell came in to bat when KKR were trying to stem the rot through Karthik and Shubman Gill (28; 17b; 3x4 1x6) before the latter fell with the team on 106/5 in 14.2 overs.
The big-hitting West Indian smoked five sixes and three fours in the last five overs to take 55 runs and help the purple brigade post a challenging score.
Krishnappa Gowtham (2/15), Jofra Archer (2/33) and Ben Laughlin (2/35) got two wickets each for the Rahane-led side with leg-spinner Ish Sodhi conceding just 15 runs off his four overs.
Royals' bowlers made early inroads to reduce KKR to 51/4 after eight overs when Karthik and Gill got together.
The pair joined hands for a 55-run stand for the fifth wicket before Gill departed and Russell stepped on the gas.
Brief scores: Kolkata Knight Riders 169/7 in 20 overs (Dinesh Karthik 52, Andre Russell 49 not out; K Gowtham 2/15, Jofra Archer 2/33, Ben Laughlin 2/35) beat Rajasthan Royals 144/4 in 20 overs Ajinkya Rahane 46, Sanju Samson 50, Piyush Chawla 2/24, Kuldeep Yadav 1/18) by 25 runs.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Bihar CM Nitish Kumar takes oath as Rajya Sabha member
New Delhi (PTI): Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday took oath as a member of Rajya Sabha, marking the end of his two-decade rule in the eastern state and paving the way for a new chief minister.
The oath was administered by Rajya Sabha Chairman C P Radhakrishnan in his chamber at a brief ceremony. The Chairman later welcomed him as a member of the Upper House and also on his return in Parliament.
Kumar took the oath in Hindi in the presence of Union Minister J P Nadda, who is also leader of the house, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Panchayati Raj Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh, Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Ram Nath Thakur and Minister of State for Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal.
Bihar deputy chief minister Samrat Chaudhary was also present at the oath-taking.
JDU leader and party's working president Sanjay Kumar Jha, Congress chief whip in Rajya Sabha Jairam Ramesh, besides BJP MP and former union minister Rajiv Pratap Rudy and BJP chief whip in Lok Sabha Sanjay Jaiswal, were among those present during the oath-taking.
"Vice President of India and Chairman, Rajya Sabha, Shri C. P. Radhakrishnan, administered the oath to Shri Nitish Kumar as an elected Member of Rajya Sabha, from Bihar, at Parliament House today," the Vice President's office said on X, while sharing pictures of the oath-taking.
After the oath-taking, Kumar came out of the new Parliament building and spoke about the time he was a member of the Lok Sabha and sat in the old Parliament building.
As Kumar assumes the Rajya Sabha role, it marks the end of his long two-decade rule in Bihar. Kumar will soon resign as chief minister and the NDA is likely to elect a new chief minister of Bihar on April 14.
He has already resigned as a member of the State Legislative Council on March 30 after he was elected to Rajya Sabha.
The JD(U) supremo was elected to the Upper House of Parliament on March 16, and he had to quit as an MLC in the 14-day period after his election.
