Coulter-Nile, Yadav guide Kolkata to qualifier

Nathan Coulter-Nile and Umesh Yadav restricted a powerful Hyderabad unit to just 128 in the Eliminator, to help Kolkata beat them by seven wickets, via the Duckworth-Lewis method, and book their berth in the qualifier against Mumbai on May 19.

Kolkata's captain, Gautam Gambhir, won the toss and opted to bowl first on a surface that offered bounce to the seamers early on. Hyderabad's top three, David Warner, Shikhar Dhawan and Kane Williamson got starts but, given the conditions, found it difficult to score freely. Yadav took the new ball with Trent Boult and he kept the usually aggressive Hyderabad openers quiet.

Yadav conceded just seven in each of his first two overs. Hyderabad limped to just 25 in the first four overs. The pressure prompted an error from Dhawan, in the fifth over, who sliced Yadav to Robin Uthappa. Williamson and Warner stood firm for the next seven overs, hitting the occasional boundary. Coulter-Nile's introduction in the eighth over prompted Warner and Williamson to attack, given they had scored at just 5.23 at that stage. Williamson launched him for a four and a six off successive deliveries in the 10th over. But he hit back to dismiss Williamson an over later, as his drive found Surya Kumar Yadav. Warner followed an over later. Yadav, Coulter-Nile and Boult then destroyed Hyderabad's middle order to ensure that they managed just 128. The rain-interrupted contest meant that Kolkata required just 48 in six overs, and Gambhir took them home with four balls to spare.