Ahmedabad, Apr 17 (PTI) Cameron Green finally came good with a timely 79 but Gujarat Titans bowled out Kolkata Knight Riders for 180 in their IPL clash here on Friday.
KKR, still searching for their first win of the season, elected to bat first but were rocked early, losing three wickets in the first four overs.
The pace duo of Kagiso Rabada (3/29) and Mohammed Siraj (2/23) tore through the top order, extracting movement with the new ball, while Ashok Sharma (2/45) and Prasidh Krishna (1/32) provided able support.
The Australian all-rounder weathered the early storm before breaking free in the middle overs, smashing seven fours and four sixes in his 55-ball stay.
He stitched together a 55-run stand with Rovman Powell and followed it up with a 60-run partnership with Anukul Roy.
Green particularly relished facing Rashid Khan, taking him apart for five boundaries and four sixes but the Afghanistan spinner had him caught behind off the final ball of the innings.
Luck, too, favoured Green. He survived an early LBW appeal, saw an outside edge fly to the boundary, and was dropped on 62 by Washington Sundar off the very next ball.
However, he waged a lone battle as no other KKR batter could survive in the middle for long.
To add to KKR’s woes, Green was starved of strike towards the fag end of the innings, watching wickets tumble at the non-striker’s end.
Siraj and Rabada had set the tone of the match in the powerplay itself Ajinkya Rahane was the first to fall, dismissed for a golden duck in the opening over by Siraj.
Rabada then struck with the ball, producing a lovely outswinger that drew young Angkrish Raghuvanshi into a tentative poke, only to find the edge through to the wicketkeeper.
Meanwhile, Tim Seifert, playing his first game of the season, looked assured at the crease, striking two fours and a six. However, his stay was brief as Rabada deceived him with a short-of-a-length delivery, which the Kiwi slapped straight to his compatriot Glenn Phillips at point.
Powell and Green soon began the repair job, with the Jamaican sending the ball sailing over cow corner for a magnificent six off Prasidh Krishna.
Powell followed it up with a series of lusty blows, taking on Ashok Sharma with a towering six and a crisp boundary.
However, the pacer had the last laugh, deceiving Powell with a slower ball that induced a thick top edge, with Siraj at long-on completing a well-judged catch to break the 55-run stand. PTI APA BS BS
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