Credit: IPL
Kamindu Mendis befuddled spectators at the iconic Eden Gardens after bowling with both arms during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 match between Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). Bowling first after winning the toss, KKR got a terrible start as their star openers Quintion de Kock and Sunil Narine went back to the dugout after failing to score in double digits. However, captain Ajnikya Rahane and Angkrish Raghuvanshi spent time in the middle and produced responsible innings from their bats. Rahane departed in the 11th over of the match, after hitting 38 off 27.
In the 13th over, SRH skipper Cummins handed the ball to Sri Lanka all-rounder Kamindu, who is playing his debut IPL game. The 26-year-old bowled the initial two deliveries with his right-arm against the left-handed batter Venkatesh Iyer. On the second delivery, Venkatesh stealed a run which brought Raghuvanshi on the strike. Confronting the right-handed batter, Mendis switched to left-handed bowling and got success on his fourth ball of the league as the KKR middle-order batter delivered a catch to Harshal Patel, who was securing the deep backward point area. However, despite picking up the crucial scalp of Raghuvanshi, Cummins didn’t utilise the Sri Lankan stalwart as a bowler again in the innings.
KKR deliver a target of 200 runs the Orange Army
After Raghuvanshi’s dismissal, Venkatesh and Rinku Singh came heavily on bowlers to help the reigning champions KKR deliver a mammoth target of 200 runs to the Orange Army. Venkatesh concluded his knock after notching up 60 off just 29 while Rinku stood until the end and scored an unbeaten 32 off 17.
Pursuing the target, the visitors are in huge trouble as they have lost their top-order batters Travis Head (four off two), Abhishek Sharma (two off six), and Ishan Kishan (two off five), within the first three overs of the innings. Vaibhav Arora launched the onslaught from Kolkata’s side as he got the better of Head, who came in the contest as an Impact Player (IP). Following Arora, Harshit Rana also stepped up and outsmarted Abhishek and KIshan.
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