Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) pulled off a dramatic three-wicket victory against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Eden Gardens on Thursday (April 9).

Chasing 182 to win, LSG were reeling at 128/7 before rookie Mukul Choudhary produced a dazzling knock of 54* in just 27 balls to take his team over the line on the final delivery.

After the game, KKR’s overseas recruit Rovman Powell praised Choudhary’s late assault with the bat.

"You want to make Eden Gardens your fortress, it's your home with your fans behind you. It always feels good at home, but credit to the youngster (Mukul), he batted really well," Powell said in the post-match press conference, referring to KKR’s four-match winless run, despite playing three at home.

KKR’s swashbuckling opener Finn Allen (9) was dismissed in a controversial manner. His top-edge was caught by Digvesh Rathi at deep third man, with replays suggesting his toes may have touched the boundary cushion.

Powell criticised the on-field umpires (Adrian Holdstock and Akshay Totre) for not referring the catch to the third umpire. However, he refrained from using it as an excuse for the team's narrow defeat.

"Definitely (more angles should have been looked at). We talked about that when he came off. We thought we had seen in the IPL that the umpires have gone upstairs for lesser things, and that are not as close as that," Powell stated.

"Maybe it was a blunder on their part, but we're not going to look into that and say that is what cost us two points tonight," he added.

Powell pointed out that it was not the typical high-scoring Eden Gardens track. He noted that stroke-making was difficult and the pitch heavily assisted bowlers who utilized slower deliveries.

"It's not that classic Eden Gardens wicket where you just go and turn around the strike and blast. It was not a 220-wicket; there was a little bit in it for the bowlers, especially when they used the slower balls."

KKR now have just one point from four matches, earned via a rain washout against Punjab Kings. Despite a difficult start to their campaign, Powell remains optimistic, citing the team’s ability to build momentum in the latter half of the tournament.

"If you see the history, the winners of IPL build up in the middle and back end of the tournament. It’s not easy when you don’t start well, but our destiny is still in our hands. We still have 10 games left," he remarked.

(With PTI Inputs)