KKR fell 16 runs short while chasing the paltry target of 112.
PBKS only managed to put 111 runs on the board on a pitch that offered assistance to the bowlers. In response, KKR were comfortably placed at 62/2 in the eighth over, but they suffered a sensational collapse to be bowled out for 95 in 15.1 overs.
Skipper Ajinkya Rahane's dismissal, on the bowling of Yuzvendra Chahal, proved to be the turning point for KKR as they lost their last eight wickets for just 33 runs.
After the game, Rahane didn’t mince his words as he held the batters accountable for this shocking defeat.
"The wicket was good. It was not an unplayable wicket or that something was wrong," said Rahane at the post-match press conference.
"The wicket was very good. The ball was coming a little late. But the bowlers did half of the work. Like you said, they were all out at 111. It was comparatively easy to chase at 112 on this wicket. We also got a good start. We got 50 in the Powerplay and at 70, I think we had 3 wickets. But again, it's a collective failure of the batting unit."
After losing the openers -- Sunil Narine (5) and Quinton de Kock (2) -- cheaply, Rahane held the innings together for a while along with Ankush Raghuvanshi. However, once their 55-run stand was broken, nosedived in a dramatic fashion.
"Many times, it's not only about hitting sixes or playing big shots. Strike rotation is also very important. And I am sure that didn't happen with our batting unit. It's not like Punjab bowled extremely well. I think we played bad cricket as a batting unit. I take this responsibility as a captain, as we couldn't chase this down. But individually, I am sure all the players, especially the batters, will think about their own game and improve in the upcoming matches.
"Half of the tournament is over. Seven matches have been played. And half is still left. It's always about coming back with good intent but still look to learn and improve as a batter and take it on in the next game," Rahane remarked.
Yuzvendra Chahal (4-28) was stand-out bowler for Punjab while Glenn Maxwell's part-time offies (1-5 in 2 overs) also troubled the KKR batters. In the first innings, KKR's spin twins Sunil Narine (2-14 in 3 overs) and Varun Chakaravarthy (2-21 in 4 overs) also did a fabulous job with the ball.
When asked whether a third spinner in Moeen Ali could have furthered KKR's advantage, Rahane replied: "When we had a look at the pitch, we thought that we won't need three spinners. Fast bowlers can get help, and historically, I don't think more than two spinners have played on this ground. This was our tactical call, although Moeen Ali bowled very well in the last two games. We thought it would be better if Nortje came on this wicket and did well, bowled really well.
"If you look at it, it's our fast bowlers who took the wickets. They kept the pressure on them. If Moeen Ali played on this wicket, maybe he could have taken wickets, but we as a management felt that three pacers and two spinners was the way to go on this pitch."
Rahane would've stayed on the pitch had he decided to review the LBW decision by the on-field umpire. Going by the visuals on the screen, it looked like the Kolkata captain was not keen on taking a review. He shook his head after the umpire raised his finger to PBKS' strong appeal and decided to make his way back to the pavilion.
Rahane was even called back by the non-striking partner Angkrish Raghuvanshi for a discussion. Even after a chat with his partner, he decided to not review the call and make his way back to the dressing room.
"As a batter, I thought that I will save the review for later. Because it shouldn't happen that I take the review and then only one review is left. And the communication between the two batsmen was also not that clear. If someone comes and tells you clearly that the impact can be outside or missing, so as a batter, you take the review. But the communication between the batsmen was not that clear. I didn't take the review because of that.
"But again, no complaints. Apart from that, we did bad batting as a batting unit. And the result of that is why we lost the game today," Rahane said.