Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) registered their second victory in the ongoing IPL season as they defeated Punjab Kings (PBKS) by 6 wickets at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Friday (April 1).

Opting to bowl first, Knight Riders bundled out PBKS for a paltry 137 in 18.2 overs. Pacer Umesh Yadav starred with the ball for KKR, claiming four wickets by conceding only 23 runs in his four overs. Tim Southee also returned with impressive figures of 2-36 in his four-over quota while Shivam Mavi, Sunil Narine, and Andre Russell also chipped in with wicket apiece.

It was a listless batting performance from the Punjab Kings. None of the batters managed to hit a half-century and Rajapaksa was the top scorer with 31.

In reply, KKR lost both their openers – Ajinkya Rahane (12) and Venkatesh Iyer (3) – cheaply. Captain Shreyas Iyer batted well for his 15-ball 26 but he failed to convert it into a big score. Nitish Rana (0) was the next batter to be dismissed as Kolkata found themselves struggling at 51/4.

Amid the tense situation, Andre Russell joined Sam Billings at the crease and the West Indies all-rounder tore apart the PBKS attack. He attacked the Punjab bowlers from the outset and notched up his half-century off 26 balls.

Russell continued the carnage after smashing the fifty and took KKR over the line with 33 deliveries to spare. He stayed unbeaten on 70 off 31 balls and his knock was studded with 2 fours and 8 sixes. Billings played the role of second fiddle perfectly and finished with 24 not out off 23 balls.

For his breathtaking strokeplay in the chase, Andre Russell received rich praise from the cricket fraternity on Twitter.

Here are the reactions: