Right then, it was yet another of those thrilling finishes for Kings! But they are up to No. 5 now on the points table, and very much in the race for a playoffs spot. Anyway, don't forget to join us for the double-header tomorrow. Until then, it is goodnight and goodbye from our side! Take care.
KL Rahul, the Orange Cap holder, is the Player of the Match: "We are used to this, but I'll take the two points. We played brilliantly and smartly. We realised it was a decent wicket. There wasn't much spin. The bowlers felt we can make the batsmen sideways... Really happy that we could get over the line. Obviously, I would want to finish games... [Leaving out Brar?] These are things that kill me as a captain - leaving out young Indian boys. Chris has left the bubble, so we had to make a few changes to see what would be our best XI. But we go to Sharjah for next game, and we'll see... Shahrukh worked really well with the batting coaches, asking a lot of questions, and developed a game where he can play at 170-180 without taking many risks. We know he can hit the ball a long way. He has done that for Tamil Nadu. Not to worry about results. Often times, we have put pressure on ourselves... Everybody knows we are a far better team. Putting pressure on ourselves is not helping. These four games in the UAE have a perfect example. It is a good learning for a young team like us."
Time for the presentations
samriddhi: "Bishnoi is also a vey strong contender for MoM "
GP: "This is the right team for Punjab, Jordan/Allan depends on the pitch. Gayle is a gamble most of the time no luck."
By the way, Kings' win today confirms Capitals' spot in the playoffs too.
srik: "MoM should go to Shami and Arshdeep .. !!" --- To both of them?
Shahrukh after that winning six: "It would have been easier for me to take on the bowlers... I thought I had it [the last ball] well. I was brave enough to take shot. As soon as I go into any situation such as this, that method is really working. We needed three wins on the trot, and have started off well..."
Eoin Morgan, losing captain: "Initially we didn't field as well, put catches down. Myself early too. We probably had a par score on the wicket. Kings played well, we fought back, but catches have cost us. I thought in real-time that the Tripathi catch was out. But when you slow it down, the third umpire decided otherwise. We got on with it once he made his call. Hopefully we play hard in the back end, get a few results and qualify into the playoffs."
10pm How about that? The points table gets even closer as the Kings not only stay alive but also give a few more sides hope. Shahrukh Khan's nine-ball 22 to take the Kings over the line begs just one question: why didn't he play earlier?
You'd also have to think if the Knight Riders allowed the match to (pardon the pun) slip out of their hands? Morgan's drop of Agarwal early on, The Iyer fumble on the boundary line for six. The Tripathi catch that the umpire said was not out, and the Tripathi attempt off the last ball.
But the win will leave the critics away from KL Rahul. His 55-ball 67 was the anchor around who Agarwal, Markram and Shahrukh could play. Kudos also to Ravi Bishnoi, Mohammed Shami and Arshdeep Singh - they helped restrict the Knight Riders to 165, and conceded only 44 runs in the last five overs.