Shubham Dubey failed to score the three runs that would have guaranteed a historic victory for RR in a thrilling match that came down to the last ball. KKR Vs RR
Rajasthan Royals 205 for 8 (Parag 95, Jaiswal 34, Vaun 2-32, Harshit 2-41, Moeen 2-43) lost to Kolkata Knight Riders 206 for 4 (Russell 57*, Raghuvanshi 44, Parag 1-21) by a single run.
In a thrilling match that might have gone either way right up to the final ball, the Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) were separated by just one run. Shubham Dubey struck Vaibhav Arora for two fours and a six with 22 needed in the last over, while Riyan Parag hit six sixes in six balls, five of which came in a 32-run over against Moeen Ali.
Dubey tried to force a Super Over by driving the yorker from Arora to long-off with three needed off the last ball. Rinku Singh’s crisp throw gave Jofra Archer, the non-striker at the other end, a good start but ended up very short.
The victory preserves KKR’s IPL 2025 playoff hopes. After a slowdown against spin, they scored 85 in their final five overs due to Andre Russell’s 25-ball 57. In the chase, Moeen and Varun Chakravarthy had RR on the ropes, but Parag nearly saved the day with a takedown of his own.
RR’s pursuit is given vitality by Parag. KKR Vs RR
When Varun flattened Wanindu Hasaranga’s off stump, however, Parag’s expression was one of disappointment. With just three fours arriving in the next four overs, RR was on the verge of being out at 136 off 73 balls, and the needed rate had reached 13. However, the final two of those assisted Parag in establishing a rhythm.
Then followed Moeen’s over of 32 runs. Four of those sixes were over midwicket or square leg. The ball soared over long-off when Moeen went wide. Varun hit the following ball for Parag, who reverse-swept it for six more.
Despite playing within himself and scoring little more than a run per ball for most of his innings, Shimron Hetmyer’s presence was comforting, as evidenced by the two overs that ended without a boundary following his removal.
Rana makes the first move. KKR Vs RR
Harshit Rana gave up a boundary off the first ball and came back with figures of 0 for 28 off two overs. To stop the runs, he next delivered three full balls and a couple of short ones. Hetmyer’s bat sent the second bouncer into the keeper’s hands.
While bowling a no-ball with yorkers and slower ones, Rana increased the pressure until Parag was almost run out on the third legal ball, holed out to long-on slapping a wide cutter very next ball, and RR slipped to 173 for 7. KKR brought Narine back with RR 43 needing off 24. He went for just five and almost had Parag caught at deep midwicket.
Like in the previous game, Russell attempted to land six yorkers after being brought on in the penultimate over. He just went for eleven, but he didn’t get it all.
The last over began with three runs thanks to Arora’s wide-yorker strategy. When Arora went short and wide and then faltered with back-to-back yorkers, Shubham went 6-4-6. However, Arora persisted, and it paid off in the end.
KKR shifts up and down. KKR Vs RR
Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Sunil Narine began the day by frequently stepping down the leg side. Gurbaz picked up four boundaries and a six, most of them on the leg side, while Narine fell cheaply and mistimed a couple. During the 56-run powerplay, Yudhvir Singh was the most expensive bowler, giving up boundaries to every top-order batsman.
Rahane got off to a strong start, driving and flicking Madhwal for four and six. However, RR’s spin choke was the primary cause of his significant slowdown, which went from 18 off 8 to 30 off 24.
Gurbaz’s slog sweeping was dismissed by Theekshana, but Hasaranga was the one who initially stopped the batters’ tempo and made them use force. After that, Parag came on and bowled three consecutive overs. He hit Rahane with a sidearm ball at 76 kph.
Angkrish Raghuvanshi, meanwhile, kept KKR moving with traditional strokes. To establish boundaries, he drove, pulled, and cut. Theekshana gave him a reprieve before Russell removed him, but Archer hit a 31-ball 44 the next over.
At the end, Russell’s mania KKR Vs RR
After stepping in at 111 for 3 in the 13th over, Russell, who claimed to feel like a 27-year-old and to be hitting like one, gave KKR the late boost they needed in their innings. He got off to a poor start (2 off 9 balls), but as soon as pace took over from spin, he took off. In the final five overs, when KKR scored 70, he struck all six of his fours and four sixes.
With a six, a four, and a slap through cover point in a 15-run over, Madhwal was the first bowler to be removed, first on the leg side. After overpitching and bowling in the slot after missing two yorkers, Archer was hammered downtown for a six and a four.
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On the 18th, Theekshana’s spin was revived. At long-off, he provided a chance for Parag to drop, and at mid-off, a mistimed slice landed safely. Russell followed Raghuvanshi in the strike rotation, which resulted in a hat-trick of sixes. Theekshana was hit in the arc between cow corner and long-off, but he missed all three balls—short on the first two and full on the third.
The following over, Archer produced two more opportunities. Russell was given another reprieve by Parag at long-off after Raghuvanshi was caught at deep square leg. That was right before Russell took advantage of Archer’s mishandled yorker to reach a fifty from 22 balls and belt a slower bouncer down the ground.
Three wides and an edge that dropped securely at deep extra cover opened the final over. Rinku pulled one in front of midwicket after the wide yorker was dropped in favor of bouncers. Both the 18th and 20th overs went for 20 runs or more after two missed yorkers went for sixes.
