IPL 2023, MI vs KKR: Venkatesh Iyer's ton in vain as Mumbai outsmarts Kolkata by 5 wickets

It was a top batting display by former two-time champion Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in Match 22 of the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) against record five-time former champion Mumbai Indians (MI) at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Sunday. While Venkatesh Iyer played a commanding knock of 104, it was not enough, as the host batters were technically sound, outplaying the struggling visiting bowlers and winning the encounter by five wickets.

Winning the toss, stand-in MI skipper Suryakumar Yadav opted to bowl, as regular captain Rohit Sharma missed out on the opening innings with a stomach bug. KKR was off to a rocking start but lost a couple for 57 by the sixth over of the PowerPlay (PP). While it was 73/3 by the ninth, Venkatesh and Shardul Thakur (13) contributed to a convincing stand of 50 for the fourth wicket before the latter walked back to pacer Hrithik Shokeen in the 13th.

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As Rinku Singh (18) joined in, he and Venkatesh added 36 for the fifth wicket. At the same time, the opener also slammed his maiden IPL hundred, becoming KKR's only second-ever centurion since Brendon McCullum's 158 in the inaugural IPL 2008 tie. However, he fell in the 18th to pacer Riley Meredith, as the visitors eventually finished on an above-par total of 185/6.

Shokeen seized a couple of wickets for MI, who was also involved in a brief verbal scuffle with the KKR skipper and his Delhi skipper Nitish Rana (5) after dismissing him. At the same time, leg-spinner Piyush Chawla was highly economical. Before the hosts' chase, Rohit was substituted as the Impact Player (IPL), while leg-spinner Suyash Sharma came in for Venkatesh.

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MI was off to a blazing start, with openers Rohit (20) and Ishan Kishan (58) putting on a 65-run stand before the former was dismissed by Suyash in the fifth. While Kishan brought up his 13th IPL half-century at this time, he was the second MI batter to be sent packing by leg-spinner Varun Chakravarthy in the eighth 22 runs later.

However, Suryakumar (43) and Tilak Varma's (30) pair put on a 60-run partnership for the third wicket to continue the hosts' onslaught before the latter was played on by Suyash in the 14th at 147. Suryakumar and Tim David (30*) added 29 for the fourth wicket before the former fell to pacer Thakur in the 17th. Nevertheless, it was too late, as the hosts eventually got the job done by five wickets, with 14 balls to spare. For KKR, Suyash grabbed a couple, whereas he was also the economic one.