kolkata [India]: Following his side’s eight-wicket win over Kolkata Knight Riders in their Indian Premier League match, Punjab Kings batter Jonny Bairstow lauded teammate and uncapped Indian batter Shashank Singh for his clean striking, calling him a ‘special player’.
Bairstow and Shashank Singh’s explosive knocks propelled PBKS to a historic finish as they helped their side beat Kolkata by eight wickets and chased down the target of 262 runs with eight balls left, making it the highest-ever run-chase in not only the IPL but the entirety of T20 Cricket.
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Following the game in a video posted by the Indian Premier League official X was batting, he took the backseat. But after that, he took his chances,” said Shashank.
Talking about the conversations he and Bairstow had, Shashank revealed that they both had decided that no one other than them should finish the match for Punjab, which was filled with belief despite such a big task in their hands.
“There were positive vibes in the dressing room. The openers, bowlers and support staff not even for a second were tense, we all had belief that we could chase,” he added.
Expanding on Shashank’s words, Bairstow said that it was one of those days when the players needed a bit of luck to chase down the target.
“KKR played well to score 261 runs. The way we played in the powerplay was special and from there we were able to kick on,” he added.
Coming to the match, Punjab sent Kolkata to bat first after winning the toss. Following this, Sunil Narine and Philip Salt delighted the Eden Gardens crowd with an exhilarating batting display and obliterated Punjab Kings bowlers to power KKR to 261/6 in 20 overs.
Arshdeep Singh led the PBKS bowling unit after he picked up two wickets.
During the run chase, Jonny Bairstow, Prabhsimran Singh and Shashank Singh played an unbeaten knock to chase down the massive target with eight balls to spare and script history.
Narine was the only wicket-taker for the KKR.
Bairstow took home the ‘Player of the Match’ award.
Out of eight matches, KKR has recorded five victories, collecting 10 points in the IPL 2024 standings, staying at the number 2 position. Meanwhile, Punjab holds eighth place with six points after winning three of nine games.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
