IPL 2024 Qualifier 1: Shreyas, Venkatesh Iyer script these records
What's the story
Kolkata Knight Riders thrashed Sunrisers Hyderabad in Ahmedabad to reach their fourth Indian Premier League final on May 21. The Knight Riders successfully chased down 160 after bowling SRH out in Qualifier 1. Venkatesh Iyer and Shreyas Iyer completed their run-chase in just 13.4 overs. Both Iyers scripted quite a few records in the match. Here are a few of them.
Knocks
Match-winning knocks from Venkatesh and Shreyas
Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Sunil Narine gave KKR a flying start as they were 44/0 after three overs. The duo departed eventually (67/2). Venkatesh (51* off 28 balls) and Shreyas (58* off 24 balls) then made the run-chase one-sided, with the former being the aggressor. Both Venkatesh and Shreyas smashed 5 fours and 4 sixes. Shreyas played a captain's knock after being dropped twice.
Information
Venkatesh's third fifty-plus score in IPL playoffs
Venkatesh smashed his third fifty-plus score in the IPL playoffs. His other scores read 26(30) vs RCB, Sharjah, 2021; 55(41) vs DC, Sharjah, 2021; and 50(32) vs CSK, Dubai, 2021.
Shreyas
Multiple fifty-plus scores in IPL playoffs
It is worth noting that KKR were cruising at 142/2 after 13 overs. Shreyas notched up 3 sixes and a four in the next four balls to get KKR home, which also brought up his fifty. Notably, Shreyas became the fourth player with multiple fifty-plus scores as captain in the IPL playoffs. He joined MS Dhoni, Rohit Sharma, and David Warner for this record.
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Second-highest partnership for KKR in IPL playoffs
Venkatesh and Shreyas added an unbeaten 97-run stand, now the second-highest partnership for KKR in the IPL playoffs. They are only behind Manvinder Bisla and Jacques Kallis, who stitched a 136-run partnership in the 2012 IPL final.
Match
KKR reach their fourth IPL final
Mitchell Starc blew SRH away after they elected to bat. Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma departed early, leaving SRH stranded at 39/4. Although Rahul Tripathi and Heinrich Klaasen took SRH past 100, Varun Chakravarthy and Harshit Rana then choked them. Pat Cummins's 30(24) guided SRH to a respectable total. KKR lost Gurbaz and Narine, but Venkatesh and Shreyas powered them their fourth IPL final.