Kolkata Knight Riders are rising like a phoenix after a disastrous start to their 2021 campaign.

Eoin Morgan’s men chased down the 156-run target with 4.5 overs in hand.

KKR captain Morgan won the toss and opted to bowl first.

Rohit and Quinton de Kock had started the MI innings with a bang as they reached fifty inside the powerplay.

Sunil Narine broke the opening stand by dismissing Rohit Sharma for 33.

Quinton de Kock got to his fifty but was soon dismissed by Prasidh Krishna, who had removed Suryakaumar Yadav cheaply.

Later, Kieron Pollard and Krunal Pandya failed to land the big blows as the MI were restricted to 155/6. 

Everything coming together for KKR

After series of batting collapses, order reshuffles and experiments, things are finally coming together for the Knight Riders.

While Shubman Gill failed to replicate his antics from the last show, Venkatesh Iyer put in another stellar batting display.

Playing in only his second IPL game, Iyer came through the likes of Jasprit Bumrah and Trent Boult to score a 30-ball half-century.

The 26-year-old kept cashing in on bad deliveries to make the tricky run chase easy for KKR.

Iyer was dismissed for 53 by Bumrah but Tripathi at the other end brought up his fifty off 29 balls.

Morgan and co have been under immense pressure coming into the UAE leg of the tournament.

From being stranded at the seventh spot, KKR are now at the fourth spot in the points table, having eight points in nine games.

Tripathi puts on a show

Coming in at No. 3 after Gill departed, Tripathi build a solid foundation with Iyer.

He never let the Mumbai bowlers settle for once or let the asking rate go beyond the reach.

It took him only 42 balls to finish at 74* not out.

The best part about Tripathi’s knock was that he took his team over the line, carried the bat and chased down the target with nearly five years in hand.

Kolkata Knight Riders 159 for 3 (Tripathi 74*, Iyer 53, Bumrah 3-42) beat Mumbai Indians 155 for 6 (de Kock 55, Rohit 33, Ferguson 2-27) by seven wickets.

Match preview – CSK vs RCB

It’s Virat Kohli vs Mahendra Singh Dhoni up next in the Indian Premier League! Royal Challengers Bangalore will seek redemption against Chennai Super Kings, being beaten once by the Yellow Army in the India-leg of the campaign.

Expected MOTM performances

De Villiers

AB de Villiers went on a golden duck in the last KKR game.

But that doesn’t put us off, knowing how the Proteas star can make it big when the situation demands.

De Villiers will back himself to play a big hand in the death overs and chip in runs with Glenn Maxwell.

With Virat Kohli having a hard time regaining his form, his role becomes even more crucial with the bat.