Rajasthan Royals win against Kolkata Knight Riders after two ties

ABU DHABI: The Indian Premier League's UAE leg saw its first tied match played in the desert when Kolkata Knight Riders made heavy weather of a chase of 152 against Rajasthan Royals at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.
The Super Over too was tied as Rajasthan hit 11/0 in response to Knight Riders' 11/2 but the former won on the boundary count. Rajasthan had 18 boundary hits compared to Kolkata's 14.
Gautam Gambhir sat in the Knight Riders' dugout wiping the dripping sweat off his forehead as Rajasthan Royals medium-pacer James Faulkner sent back three of his teammates back to the dressing room in the space of five balls in the 19th over of what should've been a canter to victory. The next over, his face drew a blank, when a run-out saw his side lose their eighth wicket.
From being just a few good shots away to what could've been an easy chase, the Knights almost lost to Rajasthan Royals if not for Shakib's presence of mind towards the very end where he managed to bring the scores at par.
The Royals didn't exactly have to do anything special to resist the opponents simply because the Knights seemed bent on suicide until then.
It was a day when Gambhir had managed to put some runs on board, sedately, but better than what he'd been contributing in matches until now. It was also the first time in the tournament so far the Knights realised that Yusuf Pathan had to be dropped and Shakib be included, purely on talent and form.
Earlier in the evening, Rajasthan Royals won the toss and decided to bat first.
After losing the first wicket early, it seemed like Ajinkya Rahane and the young Sanju Samson would apply themselves on a wicket that had a lot going the batsmen's way.
Rahane lasted enough to score 72 off 59 balls but could've gone further if not for the meek drive to long-on where he was caught off Vinay Kumar. Samson fell victim to a wrong one from Shakib and left for just 20.
Shane Watson's 33 off 24 balls eventually added the extra runs for the Royals to stretch the target up to the 150-run mark, enough as it appeared at first go for a side - the Knight Riders - who had been struggling with the bat coming into Tuesday's game. Shakib complimented the decision of the think-tank to include him for the game by ending up his team's most economical bowler.
Dropping Yusuf turned out to be an easier decision for the Knight Riders, who could not have taken a similar chance with their skipper Gambhir, who had also been suffering from a serious form slump.
After recording three successive ducks and just one run in the fourth match, Gambhir came up with 45 runs off 44 balls that turned out to be the highest individual score in the Knight Riders' innings.
Gambhir's knock and the failure of rest of the batsmen - barring Surya Kumar Yadav's 31 off 18 balls towards the end - presented a bleak picture of the Knight Riders who had started the 2014 season of IPL with a thumping win over defending champions Mumbai Indians.
This was Rajasthan's third victory in this IPL.
STORY OF THE MATCH
Turning point: When James Faulkner started the 19th over, Knight Riders needed 16 from 12 balls with five wickets remaining. However, Faulkner, on his 24th birthday, dismissed Surya Yadav, Uthappa and Vinay Kumar to bring the Royals back into the game. KKR panicked at that stage and the match went into the super over. Faulkner bowled a great super over.
76.47: Kallis's Strike Rate: All through the 2013 season, the great South African batted under a strike-rate of 100. On Tuesday too, he failed to make use of the life he got and scored only 13 in 17 balls.
10.00: Morkel's Economy Rate: The tall South African was taken to task by Sanju Samson in one over, hitting him for 20 which spoiled his figures.
Talking point: Yusuf Pathan was finally given the boot. The big-hitting batsman, who has just not clicked for KKR, was dropped. It allowed Bisla to get back into the squad. While the keeper didn't get many runs, it sent a message of intent from the owners.
THE SUPER OVER
KKR Batsmen: Suryakumar Yadav and Shakib-Al-Hasan, Bowler: James Faulkner 1st ball: Suryakumar Yadav run out going for a second run 2nd ball: Manish Pandey takes single 3rd ball: Shakib takes single 4th ball: Pandey smashes a six over long on 5th ball: Pandey takes single 6th ball: Shakib run out while going for a second run KKR: 11-2; RR target: 12 Batsmen: Shane Watson & Steve Smith, Bowler: Sunil Narine 1st ball: Watson takes a single 2nd ball: Smith takes two 3rd ball: Smith takes a single 4th ball: Watson smashes a four over mid wicket 5th ball: Watson takes a single 6th ball: Smith takes two. RR win on boundary count.