Highlights IPL 2017 DD vs KKR in Delhi, cricket scores and results: Manish Pandey helps KKR win thriller

Manish Pandey is the Man of the Match for his scintillating innings of 69 not out, which guided KKR to a memorable victory.

Breathless stuff in the end. Delhi tried their best, and gave KKR some heart-stopping moments. Was a surprise to see Mishra given the ball in the last over, but clearly Zaheer had faith on the leg-spinner’s guile. Not wrong in doing that, but there is always the threat of a leg-spinner going the distance when the batting team has to throw their bat at everything, as much as there is a chance of him taking wickets. A brilliant away-spinning delivery totally foxed Chris Woakes, but what an innings by Manish Pandey. Kept his cool under pressure and got a six when he simply had to. Has to be the Man of the Match surely. Another good win for KKR and with that they go to the top of the table. What’s good for them now is that they were stretched by Delhi, and won a tough game. Clearly, have been the most dominant outfit in the early part of the league, along with Mumbai Indians.

Manish Pandey in this IPL:

81* v MI

25* v KXIP

46 v SRH 

69* v DD (Today)*

After 20 overs,Kolkata Knight Riders 169/6 ( Manish Pandey 69 , Sunil Narine 1)

Mishra into the attack for the final over, and he deceives Woakes with a wrong ‘un! Starts off with a dot ball! Stumping chance in the second delivery after pitching it well outside Woakes’s off, drawing him into the shot. He misses, and replays confirm his dismissal with his foot outside the crease as Pant disturbs the bails. Narine flicks the third ball towards fine-leg for a single, getting Pandey back on strike. SIX! Wide outside off, Pandey connects in his slog down towards long-on beautifully, and sending the ball over the fielder! Pandey steers the fifth ball towards the wide long-off boundary, and collects two runs to guide his team home! 

Kolkata Knight Riders win by four wickets, and move to the top of the points table!

OUT! Woakes is stumped with his foot well outside the crease! What an over this is turning out to be for Mishra! More importantly, we have two dot balls at the start of the final over! KKR 160/6

Chris Woakes st Pant b Mishra 3(5)

After 19 overs,Kolkata Knight Riders 160/5 ( Manish Pandey 61 , Chris Woakes 3)

Morris to bowl the crucial penultimate over. Outstanding work by Superman Samson at long-on, saving four runs for the hosts after Pandey looks to clear the boundary. Absolutely stunning! Quick double off the next ball, thanks to some lightning quick running between the wickets by Pandey and new batsman Woakes, who guides the fifth ball towards the leg side for a single. An absolute stunner by Morris to end the over, with the yorker beating Pandey’s defence completely. And we’re set for an exciting final over! Will we witness the first super over of this tournament? Let’s find out! 

Kolkata Knight Riders need 9 off 6 balls.

After 18 overs,Kolkata Knight Riders 153/5 ( Manish Pandey 56 , Chris Woakes 1)

Cummins to bowl the 18th over. Suryakumar tries to ramp the first shot of the over towards fine third-man, though there is a fielder stationed there to save three runs for the side. Wide called for height in the third ball of the over. Good running between the wickets by the two next ball. Cummins gives Delhi a glimmer of hope in the penultimate delivery, with Suryakumar mis-hitting a full delivery straight to Zaheer at mid-off. Woakes walks out, and starts off with a quick single to retain the strike for the next over 

Kolkata Knight Riders need 16 off 12 balls.

22 runs were needed at the start of the 18th over. It is advantage KKR, but one tight over can tilt it all in Delhi’s favour. And who better to bowl at the ‘death’ than Pat Cummins? An important wicket for Cummins and Delhi as Sryakumar Yadav hits one into Zaheer’s lap at mid off. Some hope for Delhi. Who would bowl 19 and 20 though? Morris, Mathews, Mishra, Shami all have overs left. Morris and Shami, you feel, it would be.

OUT! A glimmer of hope for Delhi! Suryakumar Yadav looks to loft the ball down the ground, but doesn’t get the distance, and ends up getting caught by Zaheer at mid-off. KKR 152/5

After 17 overs,Kolkata Knight Riders 147/4 ( Manish Pandey 53 , Suryakumar Yadav 6)

Morris into his third over, with Delhi now needing a miracle to continue their winning trend. Both Pandey and Yadav choose to remain sedate in this over, getting a single every ball. The fact that the game is perfectly balanced in their favour with six wickets in hand. 

Kolkata Knight Riders need 22 off 18 balls.

After 16 overs,Kolkata Knight Riders 141/4 ( Manish Pandey 50 , Suryakumar Yadav 3)

Cummins returns to the attack for the first time since the last over of powerplay. Both Pandey and Suryakumar Yadav, the new batsman at the crease, deal in ones and twos in this over, with the former bringing up his half-century with an awkward tennis slap to send the ball wide of mid-on. Appeal for a run-out after a slight mix-up in the final ball of the over, though the Pandey returns to the non-striker’s end safely.

Kolkata Knight Riders need 28 off 24 balls.

Manish Pandey  becomes the first batsman to score 200 runs in this IPL.

This is the first century partnership (Manish Pandey-Yusuf Pathan) for the fourth wicket for any team after losing their first three wickets under 25 runs in IPL.

Half-century for Manish Pandey! The in-form KKR batsman brings up the milestone with an awkward tennis slap wide of mid-on in his 37th delivery. KKR 141/4

After 15 overs,Kolkata Knight Riders 135/4 ( Manish Pandey 48 , Suryakumar Yadav 0)

Morris back into the attack, with the game slowly slipping out of Delhi’s grasp right now. Terrible delivery in the fourth ball, as Pathan guides a full toss down his leg side towards the fine-leg boundary. Morris finally gets the breakthrough after Pathan offers him a return catch with a return catch. Pandey though, steers a full delivery outside off wide of the keeper towards the third man boundary to collect his fourth boundary. 10 off the over. 

Kolkata Knight Riders need 34 off 30 balls.

A fine innings by Yusuf Pathan comes to an end. Potentially match-winning. Played just one shot too many, hitting across the line, and skying one for Morris to take off his own bowling. Delhi have a glimmer of hope, but with 34 needed off 30 balls at the end of Morris’s over, one has to say, KKR are the favourites to win this.

OUT! Morris pulls Delhi back into the game after collecting a return catch from Pathan, who miscues towards the short cover area. Pathan was looking to play this one across the line towards the leg side. The partnership finally ends at the 110-run mark. KKR 131/4

Yusuf Pathan c&b Morris 59(39)

After 14 overs,Kolkata Knight Riders 125/3 ( Manish Pandey 43 , Yusuf Pathan 54)

Zak back into the attack in the 14th over. He was outstanding in his first spell, removing both de Grandhomme and Gambhir, and will certainly look to break the current partnership. Pathan gets to his half-century — his 15th in IPL and 21st in T20s — with a slog towards the wide long-on boundary, and collects a triple in the penultimate ball to bring up the 100-stand for the fourth wicket! Pandey tucks the last ball down the ground to end what turned out to be a very expensive over for Delhi, with 15 coming off it. The umpire signals for the second timeout of the innings. 

Kolkata Knight Riders need 44 off 36 balls.

FIFTY for Yusuf Pathan! Talk about a batsman returning to form! He brings up the milestone in the fourth ball of the over by hammering the full-toss over the wide long-on boundary!

After 13 overs,Kolkata Knight Riders 110/3 ( Manish Pandey 38 , Yusuf Pathan 42)

Mathews from the other end, after bowling a tight first over. 100 comes up for KKR with a single at the start of the over. Beaufitul roll of wrists by Pandey next ball to flick a full delivery over the square-leg boundary. Pathan nearly gloves a slow bouncer from Mathews to keeper Pant in the fourth ball. Tight running between the wickets by Pathan and Pandey in the penultimate ball. Pandey tries slogging the last ball towards midwicket, though he gets only a single after the ball lands just short of Billings near the boundary.

Kolkata Knight Riders need 59 off 42 balls.

After 12 overs,Kolkata Knight Riders 99/3 ( Manish Pandey 31 , Yusuf Pathan 40)

Shami into his third over. Pathan and Pandey once again choose to rotate the strike between themselves by dealing in singles. Pathan tries to slog the third ball down the ground, but doesn’t get more than a single due to the presence of a long-on fielder. Wide called in the penultimate delivery, and the over ends with a bit of a mix-up between Pandey and Pathan, with the former nearly getting run-out in the process. 

Kolkata Knight Riders need 70 off 48 balls.

Most days to score 2000 runs in IPL:

3280 – Parthiv Patel

3276 – MANISH PANDEY*

2904 – Dwayne Smith

After 11 overs,Kolkata Knight Riders 93/3 ( Manish Pandey 29 , Yusuf Pathan 37)

Mathews introduced into the attack in the 11th over, and he appeals for an lbw first ball even though it appeared to be missing leg by a distance. Four singles and a leg bye in the over. 

Kolkata Knight Riders need 76 off 54 balls.

Youngest players to score 2000 runs in IPL:

24y 175d – Virat Kohli 

25y 155d – Suresh Raina

25y 344d – Rohit Sharma 

26y 331d – Ajinkya Rahane 

27y 219d – MANISH PANDEY*

KKR well-placed at the halfway stage, needing 81 to get off 60 balls, with seven wickets in hand. That is a favourable equation by T20 standards. If Yusuf and Pandey can stay for five more overs, KKR would have been closing in on a win. Mohammad Shami has looked rusty for Delhi. Did Delhi make a mistake by not picking the left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem?

After 10 overs,Kolkata Knight Riders 88/3 ( Manish Pandey 27 , Yusuf Pathan 35)

Shami continues after the timeout. Pathan tries pulling the second ball, though he gets an inside edge onto his thigh. Five wides conceded in the fifth ball, after Shami fires a fuller delivery down Pandey’s leg side that beats Pant on its way to the fine-leg boundary. Deft touch by Pandey in the last ball as he guides it past the keeper towards the fine third man boundary. 13 off the over, and the pair have brought the KKR innings back to life by now. The equation looks a lot more managreable right now. 

Kolkata Knight Riders need 81 off 60 balls.

Yusuf Pathan is showing more than a glimpse of his Rajasthan Royals avatar. Collects a few good boundaries and a six to boot. Meanwhile Manish Pandey continues his rich vein of form. The KKR duo give Delhi a lot to talk about in the strategic timeout.

After 9 overs,Kolkata Knight Riders 75/3 ( Manish Pandey 21 , Yusuf Pathan 33)

Mishra into his second over. Pandey comes down the track in the third ball of the over, and launches it straight down the ground past the sight screen like a bullet! The 50-partnership comes up with a wide and a single after the six. Four to end the over, with Pathan hammering the ball straight down the ground for a four. 14 off the over, and these two are starting to bring Kolkata back in the game. The umpire signals for the timeout at the end of the over. 

Kolkata Knight Riders need 94 off 66 balls.

After 8 overs,Kolkata Knight Riders 61/3 ( Manish Pandey 13 , Yusuf Pathan 28)

Mohammed Shami introduced into the attack for the first time in the innings, and indeed the tournament. A double for Pandey at the start of the over. Shami keeps it tight in the rest of the over. Pathan hoicks the last ball towards the boundary between deep midwicket and long-on and manages to clear the fence. That was effortlessly done, such is his power! 

Kolkata Knight Riders need 108 off 72 balls.

After 7 overs,Kolkata Knight Riders 52/3 ( Manish Pandey 10 , Yusuf Pathan 22)

Spin introduced after powerplay, with Mishra getting the ball. The team 50 comes up with a single in the first ball. Pandey uses all his power to pull a short ball in the penultimate delivery, but gets only a single due to the presence of a fielder in outfield. Just three runs off the over. 

Kolkata Knight Riders need 117 off 78 balls.

After 6 overs,Kolkata Knight Riders 49/3 ( Manish Pandey 8 , Yusuf Pathan 21)

Cummins into his second over. Pathan tries to pull a short ball in the second ball, only to get a top-edge that carries all the way to the long-stop boundary. Doesn’t connect his pull properly next ball, but gets a boundary anyway after it lands in the vacant cow-corner region. Two balls later, it is Pandey’s turn to smash a back-of-length deliery towards the midwicket boundary. Good over for KKR, with 14 coming off it. End of the powerplay. 

Kolkata Knight Riders need 120 off 84 balls.

After 5 overs,Kolkata Knight Riders 34/3 ( Manish Pandey 2 , Yusuf Pathan 12)

Zaheer into his third over. Yusuf guides the second ball, a back-of-length off-cutter, towards the backward square-leg boundary. Goes for the same shot next ball, though Zaheer changes his line this time, with the batsman getting a top-edge that nearly carries to Billings at the square-leg boundary. Just six off the over, and Zaheer has done a terrific job in the powerplay so far.

After 4 overs,Kolkata Knight Riders 28/3 ( Manish Pandey 1 , Yusuf Pathan 7)

Morris introduced into the attack. Gets off the mark with a double in the second ball of the fourth over, before he goes for a lofted drive with a straight bat to get his first boundary. Seven off the over, including that boundary.

Self-destruction. That’s what KKR are doing now, and we are witnessing bit of a collapse. Gambhir would have some answering to do after this match. First he dropped a sitter to give Morris a ’life’ and now simply threw his wicket away, jumping down the track and playing a nothing shot, that too against Zaheer. And then some mindless running between Pandey and new man Yusuf Pathan. Nearly produced another wicket. Yusuf Pathan has flattered to deceive during his stint in KKR, but if he can take his side home here, it would do his reputation a world of good. And he makes his intent clean with a brilliant straight four.

After 3 overs,Kolkata Knight Riders 21/3 ( Manish Pandey 1 , Yusuf Pathan 0)

Zaheer into his second over. Shout for lbw in the first ball, though Gambhir sets off a single, which is called a leg-bye. Pandey gets off the mark in the first ball that he faces. Gambhir tries to up the scoring rate in the penultimate ball by coming down the track and swinging his bat across the line, but ends up miscuing it to Mathews at backward point. Two runs and a wicket off the over.

Nemeses of Gautam Gambhir in IPL:

6 – ZAHEER KHAN*

5 – Pragyan Ojha

4 – Harbhajan Singh

OUT! Now DD captain Zaheer gets rid of his KKR counterpart Gambhir, who miscues towards the backward point region where Mathews holds on to the catch. KKR 21/3

Gautam Gambhir c Mathews b Zaheer 14(12)

Two quick wickets lost by KKR. Cummins put the ball in a good channel and area and forced Robin Uthappa to play a false shot. KKR would underestimate the target at their own peril. The X-factor for Delhi may be Zaheer Khan’s leadership  and captaincy. Task cut out for Gambhir and Co surely. But this is the key partnership for the purple brigade, with Gambhir and Manish Pandey at the crease. KKR will also have to be careful of a certain Amit Mishra.

KKR shuffle their openers again, and logically given DD’s bowling penetration. But DD winning this bout, with two wickets knocked off in two overs already. Great start for their target defence, 169 will look like 180 now. All sorts of bother for KKR here. 

After 2 overs,Kolkata Knight Riders 19/2 ( Gautam Gambhir (C) 14 , )

Cummins to bowl the second over. Back-to-back boundaries for Gambhir in the first two balls, and with that he wrests the Orange Cap back from Mumbai Indians’ Nitish Rana. Stand and deliver by Uthappa in the penultimate ball of the over, guiding it towards the wide long-on fence, before perishing next ball by edging an outswinger to the keeper. 13 runs and a wicket.

OUT! Horrible start for KKR, as Uthappa departs after getting a thick edge to the keeper off Cummins’ bowling; KKR 19/2

Robin Uthappa c Pant b Cummins 4(2)

After 1 overs,Kolkata Knight Riders 6/1 ( Gautam Gambhir (C) 5 , Robin Uthappa (W) 0)

Zaheer to Gambhir at the start of the KKR innings, and the skipper starts off by collecting a couple of runs in the first ball with a flick towards backward square-leg. Colin de Grandhomme, brought in as an opener in another KKR experiment, perishes in just the fifth ball of the innings, flicking a slower ball from Zaheer straight to Billings at deep midwicket. Five runs and a wicket in the first over.

Gautam Gambhir v Zaheer Khan in IPL:

Runs – 101

Balls – 68

Dismissals – 5

Average – 20.20 

SR – 148.53

Who will win the battle today?

So the ‘Kamikaze mission’ with Sunil Narine opening not employed in this match by KKR. Is that the end to that experiment? Possibly not, and we may see it again being used strategically later in the tournament. But good move to have Colin de Grandhomme opening. He is a more believable replacement for the injured Chris Lynn. But the Kiwi couldn’t do a lot with the bat, not at least in this match as he skies one and Billings takes an easy catch.

OUT! Zak strikes in the very first over! De Grandhomme lobs the slow ball high up in the air towards Billings at deep midwicket; KKR 5/1

Colin de Grandhomme c Billings b Zaheer 1(2)

Right! A new opener again for KKR as De Grandhomme strides out to the middle along with Gautam Gambhir. Zaheer Khan will start off.

Easy to say DD missed Corey Anderson today. Couldn’t do much after Rishabh Pant got out, especially since KKR bowled very well. Not much to say about their fielding though, it continues to be poor this season. DD finish with 168, not sure if it is a defendable target against an in-form KKR batting line-up. The continued decision to promote Karun Nair ahead of Pant has to be questioned. 

Right. 168 in the end for Delhi. A bit under par and KKR should be confident of chasing it down considering the batting that they have. A crafty slower ball bouncer from Woakes finally gets rid of Morris. KKR would have to be a bit wary of the Ferozeshah Kotla wicket though, which might get a bit slow in the second innings. But leave out the 26-ball over from Umesh when Pant got stuck into him, and Delhi’s score would have been far lighter. May be Umesh can learn a trick or two from Woakes, especially the art of varying the pace.

After 20 overs,Delhi Daredevils 168/7 ( Pat Cummins 3 , Mohammed Shami 0)

Woakes into the final over. Singles exchanged between the two batsmen in the first two balls, both looking for the big hit. Morris pulls a short, fast one from Woakes towards the long-leg boundary for a one-bounce four. FOUR! Outside edge off Morris’ bat in the next delivery carries all the way to the third man boundary. Morris is dismissed next delivery after uppercutting a slower ball from Woakes straight to Umesh at short third man. Shami walks out to bat in the last ball, and goes off for a bye after a swing and a miss.

OUT! Brilliant change of pace by Woakes, as he gets Morris to uppercut a slow bouncer straight to Umesh at short third man. DD 167/7 with just one more ball to go!

After 19 overs,Delhi Daredevils 157/6 ( Chris Morris 7 , Pat Cummins 2)

Coulter-Nile to bowl the penultimate over, and he starts off with a wide — which is a rather harsh call by the umpire as the ball would have hit Pant on the ribs had he not shuffled to his left. Coulter-Nile succeeds in getting rid of Pant in the second ball, after the latter slices a low full-toss from NCN straight to Gambhir at backward point. Couple of dropped chances in the over, with Umesh and Gambhir letting go of opportunities at long-on and extra-cover respectively. More luck for Delhi in the over after the slower ball clips Cummins’ leg-stump, but fails to dislodge the bail. Five off the over and a wicket.

Rishabh Pant has given DD the acceleration they needed. But KKR haven’t leaked runs like Pune or Punjab did. Could be the difference between chasing 170 and 180-plus here. But back to Pant, what a player he is already at 19 years old… surely will be playing limited-overs for India regularly before the end of this year. 

Big wicket that of Rishabh Pant. Could make a difference of at least 20 runs to the total. Umesh is not having a good day though. Drops Morris. And guess what! The captain drops Morris himself. KKR should have taken both those catches. Looks like KKR simply don’t want to get Morris out! They would have themelves to blame is Morris tonks a few sixes now. Gambhir better make amends with the bat now! And then Cummins has the ball hitting his leg stump, but the bails don’t come off. Talk about having nine lives. How man do the Delhi batsmen have?

Most catches taken by captains in IPL:

31 – Virat Kohli 

22 – Virender Sehwag, GAUTAM GAMBHIR*

21 – Rohit Sharma

OUT! And now Pant heads back to the dugout after slicing a low full-toss from Coulter-Nile straight to Gambhir at backward point. That dismissal might go on to cost Delhi 20-odd runs in the last couple of overs. DD 153/6

Rishabh Pant c Gambhir b Coulter-Nile 38(16)

After 18 overs,Delhi Daredevils 153/5 ( Rishabh Pant (W) 38 , Chris Morris 5)

Narine into his final over, and ends the partnership by foxing Sri Lankan all-rounder and skipper Angelo Mathews in the second ball. Mathews looked to play this across the line, but did not quite get to the pitch of the delivery that turned a bit, and hit the top of his stumps. Chris Morris walks out to bat, and hammers a boundary towards the off side with a reverse sweep. Narine ends with figures of 1/20.

Umesh gets an absolute flogging from Rishabh Pant. Twenty six runs from that over, with three sixes and two fours. There goes KKR’s strike bowler and he goes the distance. What would have served Umesh better in the face of such attack would have been changes of pace. Slower ball just outside off would have been a good option as would have been a loopy bouncer. Umesh was a bit predictable with his length, line and pace from Umesh in that over, which helped Pant to tee off. Gambhir brings Narine to stem the slow of runs and as always the wily off-spinner produces a wicket, deceiving Angelo Mathews to get him bowled. Delhi are getting a move on now though.

OUT! Narine breaks the partnership by foxing Mathews to shatter his stumps! Ends the 35-run fifth-wicket partnership. Disappointing start for Mathews in this tournament. DD 145/5

Angelo Mathews b Narine 1(4)

Most time 50+ runs conceded in IPL:

4 – Ashok Dinda, UMESH YADAV*

3 – RP Singh, Amit Mishra, Andre Russell, Munaf Patel

After 17 overs,Delhi Daredevils 145/4 ( Rishabh Pant (W) 37 , Angelo Mathews 1)

Umesh into his final over. Starts off with an outswinger that moves away from Pant and narrowly beats his outside edge. SIX! Poor delivery from Umesh next ball, and Pant promptly deposits this one towards the cow-corner boundary. FOUR! Short and wide from Umesh, and the keeper-bat slashes it towards the backward point boundary. SIX! Flicked away over the boundary back of square by Pant! Sensational batting by the youngster! SIX MORE! Umesh is ending his spell on a nightmarish note! This one was in the slot to get hammered over the wide long-on boundary! FOUR! 26 runs leaked by Umesh in his final over! Could this over prove game-changing later in the match?

After 16 overs,Delhi Daredevils 119/4 ( Rishabh Pant (W) 11 , Angelo Mathews 1)

Pant hammers his first boundary of his innings, and it is a six that is launched straight down the ground. Warning signs for the KKR bowlers. Nine runs off the over.

Angelo Mathews in 2015 in IPL for DD:

Innings – 10

Runs – 144

Average – 20.57

SR – 138.46

HS – 28

Will he perform well for DD this season?

Coulter-Nile nails a yorker to remove Karun Nair. He has vindicated his selection with figures of 2/17 in three overs so far. Delhi have lost thir way a bit after a brisk start. Runs are not easy to come by and they have lost wickets at crucial junctures. KKR have conceded only 12 runs in three overs after conceding 11 in the 12th. If they can restrict Delhi to 165 or even 170, they would fancy this one.

After 15 overs,Delhi Daredevils 110/4 ( Rishabh Pant (W) 3 , )

Coulter-Nile into his second over. Pant grabs a single in the second delivery, before Coulter-Nile frustrates Nair with a series of variations that beat the Karnataka batsman’s bat every time, including the last ball in which he gets castled off a full toss.

Karun Nair since his triple century v England across formats: 14, 12, 28, 7, 14, 12, 4, 26, 0, 23, 5, 4, 0, 21 (Today)

BOWLED! What an over by Coulter-Nile! After frustrating Nair with his variations, the latter tries to slog across the line, and misses it completely, with the ball rattling the base of the stumps. DD 110/4

Karun Nair b Coulter-Nile 21(27)

Good awareness shown by KKR on the field. They had been castigated for their sloppiness on the field in the loss to Mumbai Indians, and then against KXIP as well, but they pulled their socks up in the next game against SRH. But as you say that, Uthappa fails to hold on to an outside edge off Iyer. Yes, a drop is a drop, but would give Uthappa the benefit of doubt. Those are catches which have to stick. But sure, it was a big opportunity to get both the set batsmen in quick succession.

After 14 overs,Delhi Daredevils 109/3 ( Karun Nair 21 , Rishabh Pant (W) 2)

Narine into his third over. Iyer is run out in the second ball while trying to come back for a risky second run, falling short of his crease despite a dive. Nair is dropped on 20 in the fourth ball by wicketkeeper Uthappa after a thick edge. Rishabh Pant, the new batsman at the crease, collects two singles in the over.

Did you know?

Shreyas Iyer has not scored 30-plus runs in an IPL match since nine innings. Last time, he scored 30-plus runs was against CSK at Raipur in 2015.

51/2 in seven overs after the powerplay. Nair-Iyer played well for their 43-run stand. Scored at 7.8 per over so they kept the score going. Iyer will be disappointed with that run-out though, was looking good. Still, helps DD to send in the big hitters now and aim for 180, starting with Rishabh Pant of course. 

OUT! Iyer is caught well short of his crease thanks to a sharp throw by de Grandhomme coming in from deep midwicket, with Uthappa quickly shattering the stumps! DD 106/4

Shreyas Iyer run out (de Grandhomme) 26(17)

Kuldeep didn’t get his length spot on in his second over. Bowled either a bit too short, or a bit too full. Not a lot of spin on offer from the pitch at the moment though and the batsmen can trust the bounce. Looks a good wicket to bat on. Delhi will need at least 185 to challenge the strong KKR batting line-up. Umesh bowls a well-directed short ball, but spoils it with a loose delivery that gets cut for four.

After 13 overs,Delhi Daredevils 104/2 ( Karun Nair 19 , Shreyas Iyer 25)

Umesh back into the attack, with Gambhir controlling the proceedings at the moment by marshalling his resources quite well. The team 100 comes up for Delhi in the fifth delivery after Nair pats the ball down the ground for a single. Iyer ruins what would have been a superb over, cutting the last ball towards the off-side to get his fourth boundary. Six scored off the over.

After 12 overs,Delhi Daredevils 98/2 ( Karun Nair 18 , Shreyas Iyer 20)

Kuldeep into his second over. Nair elegantly plays a back-of-length delivery from Kuldeep towards the fielder at the midwicket boundary. He gets his sweep bang on in the fourth delivery, with the ball crossing the rope after one bounce. Couple of double exchanged towards the end of the over, with 11 coming off it.

After 11 overs,Delhi Daredevils 87/2 ( Karun Nair 9 , Shreyas Iyer 18)

Good over by Woakes, giving away just four singles off it. Kolkata Knight Riders are back in the game after leaking too many runs at the start of the innings, and have the chance to gain control of the proceedings right now.

After 10 overs,Delhi Daredevils 83/2 ( Karun Nair 7 , Shreyas Iyer 16)

Colin de Grandhomme to bowl the first over after the timeout. Short wide delivery to start things off, and Iyer cuts this one towards the backward point boundary. Iyer ends the over with his second boundary of the over, this time driving on the up towards the extra-cover boundary.

Samson’s wicket is a huge loss for DD. Was timing the ball well and keeping the score card ticking. Karun Nair is woefully short of confidence at the moment, so it is an opportunity for KKR to fight back and bowl a few restrictive overs. Final score hinges on this Nair-Shreyas Iyer partnership. 

Umesh reaps the benefit of bowling on a good length in the corridor of uncertainty. And a massive wicket that, getting rid of the in-form Sanju Samson. He could have made some real damage had he stayed past 10 overs. But Kolkata must not drop their guard. Delhi still have some quality batting left. The new man in Shreyas Iyer, if one remembers, had slammed an imperious double century in a tour match against Australia not too long ago, and his partner Karun Nair had shot to instant fame with a Test triple century against England. So they can bat! And there are hard-hitters like Rishabh Pant and Chris Morris to contend with. What a snorter that was from Woakes though in the last over. Nearly decapitated Iyer.

After 9 overs,Delhi Daredevils 71/2 ( Karun Nair 5 , Shreyas Iyer 6)

Woakes into his second over. Nair and Iyer exchange three singles between them, before Iyer gets a top-edge in the penultimate delivery to guide a bouncer towards the fine third-man boundary. Eight off the over, with the umpire signalling for the timeout at the end of it.

After 8 overs,Delhi Daredevils 63/2 ( Karun Nair 3 , Shreyas Iyer 0)

Umesh into his second over, and he inflicts a massive blow on the Delhi side by getting rid of Samson, who has been their leading run-getter of the tournament so far. The youngster was starting to look dangerous today as well, and was only 11 away from a half-century when it took a peach of a delivery from the Vidarbha pacer to end his innings. Shreyas Iyer walks out to bat, and blocks the first ball.

OUT! What a delivery by Umesh to get rid of Samson, who is caught behind while trying to tickle a delivery that moves slightly away from him after pitching along length! DD 63/2

Sanju Samson c Uthappa b Umesh 39(25)

After 7 overs,Delhi Daredevils 59/1 ( Sanju Samson 37 , Karun Nair 1)

Coulter-Nile returning to the attack for the first time since the first over, strikes straight away by getting Billings caught behind with a short ball down his leg side. Karun Nair is the new batsman at the crease, and he gets off the mark with a single towards the leg side. Samson continues his attacking approach from the other end, guiding a back-of-length delivery wide off the keeper towards the third man boundary. Six runs and a wicket from the over.

Not a great start by the KKR bowlers, but more than that, top quality batting by the Delhi openers. They brought up fifty in the 5th over itself and it would have been trouble for KKR had they not found a way to break the partnership quickly. Sunil Narine bowled a good over – the sixth of the innings – with some variation, to pull things back a bit. Only three runs from that over and and then Coulter-Nile gets a wicket against the run of play to dismiss Billings. A fortuitous wicket really, a short ball straying down the leg side. Billings didn’t look too confident after the appeal, said the commentator, but the umpire didn’t look confident giving that out himself! A clear edge though.

Great start for DD third match in succession. 62 in Pune, 49 against Punjab and now 53 against KKR. Got 207 and 188 in the previous two games, and Sanju Samson is timing the ball beautifully. Never mind Sam Billings’ wicket, DD will be looking to kick on for another high score here. 

OUT! Coulter-Nile returns in the seveth over, and gets a faint edge off Billings’ bat to get him caught behind! Coulter-Nile, who went for 10 runs in his first over, makes a confident return to the attack by firing a short ball down Billings’ leg side, which the latter tried to pull, but ended up getting an audible edge off. DD 53/1

Sam Billings c Uthappa b Coulter-Nile 21(17)

After 6 overs,Delhi Daredevils 53/0 ( Sanju Samson 32 , Sam Billings 21)

A much better over by Narine this time, just three runs coming off it. End of the powerplay, with Delhi getting off to a cracking start. Could have got more had it not been for their cautious approach against Narine.

After 5 overs,Delhi Daredevils 50/0 ( Sanju Samson 31 , Sam Billings 19)

Another spinner introduced, with Kuldeep coming into the attack in the fifth over. The chinaman loops one up to Billings first ball, and gets flicked towards the square-leg boundary. Outside edge off Billings’ bat in the fourth ball, though there isn’t a slip fielder thankfully for him. Nine off the over, with the fifty-stand between Samson and Billings coming up in this over.

After 4 overs,Delhi Daredevils 41/0 ( Sanju Samson 29 , Sam Billings 12)

Spin introduced into the attack in the fourth attack, with KKR under pressure after a couple of expensive overs. And he straightaway brings the run-rate down by giving away just five singles. Trust Narine to fix the leaky pipe.

After 3 overs,Delhi Daredevils 36/0 ( Sanju Samson 27 , Sam Billings 9)

FOUR! Umesh bowls the third over, and Billings greets him by getting his first boundary, flicking it towards the midwicket boundary. Samson dazzles one and all with an exquisite cover drive in the third delivery that none in the outfield decide to go after. Four more in the next ball, as Samson cheekily decides to guide the short ball from Umesh down towards third man. Another cracking drive by Samson to end the over, with 17 coming off it. Probably will be a while before Gambhir trusts Umesh with the ball again in this innings.

Sanju Samson v Sunil Narine in IPL:

Runs – 15

Balls – 18

Dismissals – 2

Average – 7.50

SR – 83.33

Will KKR bring in Sunil Narine early to stop in-form Sanju Samson?

After 2 overs,Delhi Daredevils 19/0 ( Sanju Samson 15 , Sam Billings 4)

Woakes into the attack from the other end. Billings flicks the first ball towards midwicket for a single. Quick singles exchanged over the next couple of deliveries. FOUR! Samson times his late cut to perfection, piercing the gap bewteen backward point and gully. Nine off the over.

KKR may have opted for Nathan Coulter-Nile instead of Trent Boult as the lead pacer, but one feels for Boult. He has not done much wrong in the matches that he has played in the matches so far, and has bowled his heart out really. Has been a bit unlucky as catches have been dropped off his bowling and some miscues have not gone to hand. Otherwise, it is a very balanced side in all departments. Kuldeep Yadav and Sunil Narine one of the best spin-bowling duo in the tournament and then KKR have two able all-rounders in Chris Woakes and Colin de Grandhomme. Narine one expects would open the batting again.

After 1 overs,Delhi Daredevils 10/0 ( Sanju Samson 9 , Sam Billings 1)

DD off to a good start. Samson looks in pretty good touch. Coulter-Nile bowls the first ball a touch wide but just inside the guideline. Samson leaves it. But then thumps the next ball over mid on before following up with a lovely square drive – A shot he’s played really well in this IPL so far. A couple of singles more make it 10 runs from the over. There was half a shout for LBW off the last ball of the over, the ball tailed back in a tad but the impact was way outside off.

Right! The DD openers – Sam Billings and Sanju Samson have made their way out to the middle. Coulter-Nile will start off.

Head to Head: (DD v KKR): 

Matches – 17

DD won – 7

KKR won – 10 

At Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi:

Matches – 6

DD won – 2

KKR won – 4

Two big changes for DD. Corey Anderson is sick. He has given solidity against spin to their middle order in the last couple matches. Big miss for the hosts. And a big call in leaving out Shahbaz Nadeem for Mohammed Shami. While Shami bolsters their pace attack further, Nadeem has an economy of 4.9 from three matches, the best in this season so far. Could be a huge call. Should it have been Shami for Amit Mishra instead?

KKR XI: Narine, Gambhir, Uthappa, Pandey, Pathan, Suryakumar, de Grandhomme, Woakes, Kuldeep, Umesh, Coulter-Nile. 

Just one change in the Kolkata Knight Riders line up, with skipper Gambhir replacing Boult with Coulter-Nile due to the latter’s ability to use his height to his advantage for extracting bounce.

DD XI: Samson, Billings, Nair, Iyer, Pant, Mathews, Morris, Cummins, Mishra, Zaheer, Shami.

Two changes: Mohammed Shami replaces Shahbaz Nadeem, while Angelo Mathews comes in place of Corey Anderson who isn’t well today.

TOSS: Delhi Daredevils win the toss and elect to bat first. Delhi captain Zaheer Khan says the wicket is hard and firm, and will provide some bounce. KKR skipper Gautam Gambhir is happy with the prospect of batting second.

Snehal Pradhan analyses RPS’s win over RCB.

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Vedam Jaishankar takes a look at what could have gone wrong for Royal Challengers Bangalore in their loss to Rising Pune Supergiant last evening.

IPL 2017: Did Shane Watson’s quest for personal glory cost Royal Challengers Bangalore against RPS?http://www.firstpost.com

Read the preview of the upcoming match between DD and KKR below.

IPL 2017: Delhi Daredevils, Kolkata Knight Riders clash in crucial encounter with wind in their sailshttp://www.firstpost.com

Hello and welcome to Firstpost’s live coverage of the 18th match of the IPL 2017, with Delhi Daredevils taking on Kolkata Knight Riders at the Feroz Shah Kotla in New Delhi.