Leaders Online Desk: Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) defeated Sunrisers Hyderabad by eight wickets in the Qualifier-1 match on the back of brilliant half-centuries by Venkatesh Iyer and skipper Shreyas Iyer to enter the final. Batting first, Hyderabad scored 159 runs in 19.3 overs on the back of Rahul Tripathi's 55, but KKR scored an unbeaten 58 off 24 balls with five fours and four sixes from Shreyas and Venkatesh Iyer's five fours off 28 balls to seal an unbeaten innings of 51 off four sixes in 13.4 overs. Scored 164 runs for the loss of two wickets.
KKR thus maintained their unbeaten record in Qualifier-1 and became the first team to reach the finals of IPL 2024. Despite the defeat, the Hyderabad team is not out of the competition. They will have another chance to enter the title race. Hyderabad will now face the winner of the eliminator between RCB and Rajasthan Royals in Qualifier-2 on Wednesday. The winner of Qualifier-2 will face KKR in the title match at Chennai's Chepauk Stadium on Sunday.
Earlier, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) skittled Sunrisers Hyderabad by 159 runs in 19.3 overs thanks to a superb performance by the bowlers led by pacer Mitchell Starc. Hyderabad skipper Pat Cummins won the toss and elected to bat first, but Starc hit from the start and his innings failed. The Hyderabad team could not recover from this setback, but Rahul Tripathi's half-century and finally Cummins' quick innings helped the team to cross the 150-run mark.
Mitchell Starc took three wickets for KKR. The most expensive player in the history of the tournament, Starc's performance this season has not been anything special, but he has shown his potential in important matches like Qualifier-1. Starc gave Hyderabad a big blow by dismissing Travis Head without opening his account in the first over. After this he also sent Nitish Reddy and Shahbaz Ahmed to the pavilion. Apart from Starc, spinner Varun Chakraborty took two wickets for KKR. Interestingly, every bowler of KKR excelled in this match and managed to prevent Hyderabad from scoring big.
With wickets falling, Heinrich Klaasen led the innings along with Rahul Tripathi and completed his half-century in just 29 balls. However, Rahul was run out after scoring 55 runs in 35 balls with the help of seven fours and a six. Apart from him, Klaassen contributed 32 runs off 21 balls and Cummins contributed 30 runs off 24 balls. Hyderabad's batting was so poor in this match that only four of the team's batsmen could reach double figures.
🥁 We have our first FINALIST of the season 🥳
Kolkata Night Riders are one step closer to the ultimate dream
Scorecard ▶️ https://t.co/U9jiBAlyXF#TATAIPL | #KKRvSRH | #Qualifier1 | #TheFinalCall pic.twitter.com/JlnllppWJU
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