IPL 2022: Agarwal credits Russell for 'taking the game away' from PBKS
Apr 02, 2022
Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], April 2 : After getting thrashed by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in their Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 clash, Punjab Kings (PBKS) skipper Mayank Agarwal praised all-rounder Andre Russell for match-winning knock.
Andre Russell's unbeaten knock of 70 from 31 balls helped KKR score 141/4 in 14.3 overs in reply to PBKS 137 to register a six-wicket victory and make a mockery of the chase here at Wankhede Stadium on Friday.
"We didn't bat well enough. We showed some real fight with the ball initially and then Dre Russ came in and got going. Credit to him for taking the game away from us like that. I think it was a 170ish wicket. We started off well but could not capitalize, there were a few soft dismissals," said Mayank Agarwal in a post-match presentation.
"But it is fine as it is the start of the tournament. They (bowlers) pulled it back nicely for us with 4 for 50 we were in the game, but Russell took the game away. There were a lot of positives to take away," he added.
PBKS were bowled out for a modest 137 in 18.2 overs as Umesh Yadav bagged four wickets for 23 runs to earn the 'Player of the Match' award.
Punjab started off aggressively despite losing their captain Mayank Agarwal in the very first over to Umesh Yadav but Bhanuka Rajapaksa's 31-run knock off 9 balls helped 2014 finalists reach the 50-run mark in just 4.4 overs.
The two-time champions KKR got wickets at regular intervals and did not allow any partnership to flourish.
Sunil Narine and Varun Chakaravarthy bowled eight overs among themselves and conceded only 37 runs with Chakaravarthy conceding only 14 in his four overs.
