IPL Flashback: Manish Pandey emerges as hero in Kolkata Knight Riders' 2014 IPL triumph

June 2014 undoubtedly marks a special month for Kolkata Knight Riders as they brought their second Indian Premier League title home in three years by defeating Kings XI Punjab at Bangalore’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium on 1 June.

The day made the cricket enthusiasts recognise some new IPL heroes including Bengal star Wriddhiman Saha and most importantly, Manish Pandey who turned out to be the show-stealer of the day.

Winning the toss, Kolkata skipper Gautam Gambhir let Punjab bat first. Punjab started the innings well but lost their in-form opener Virender Sehwag and skipper George Bailey in the powerplay. But then Manan Vohra and Wriddhiman Saha joined hands to steer the innings and stitched a 129-run partnership.

While Vohra registered a half-century, scoring 67 runs in 52 deliveries, Saha showcased some explosive strikes to fetch a much-needed ton. The right-handed batter remained unbeaten for 115 runs facing just 55 balls and became the first batter to register a century in the final of the Indian Premier League. Powered by Saha’s knock, Kings XI Punjab posted a huge 199 on the board. For KKR, spinner Piyush Chawla got two wickets giving away 44 runs in his four-over spell.

Coming in to chase down 200 runs, Kolkata lost their opener Robin Uthappa in the very first over of their innings. Then Manish Pandey stepped in to lead the innings with skipper Gautam Gambhir. While Gambhir’s innings ended at 23 (17 balls), Panday almost cleared the path of taking the side home keeping the required run rate under check. Pandey smashed 94 runs during his 50-ball innings that included seven boundaries and six maximums. Middle-order batters Yusuf Pathan and Sakib Al Hassan played their parts adding 36 and 12 runs respectively to the score sheet.

8 years to that iconic night! 😍#AmiKKR #IPL2014 pic.twitter.com/WVnP96mZar

— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) June 1, 2022

After Pandey’s dismissal in the 17th over, the Knights were 21 runs behind from clinching the victory. Piyush Chawla did not take much time to change the equation as he whacked a maximum against Aussie pacer Mitchell Johnson on the last ball of the 19th over bringing the equation down to five in the final over. He hit a boundary against Parvinder Awana in the third delivery to confirm the second IPL title for his side. Manish Pandey was declared the player of the match for his match-winning knock.

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