| Indian Premier League |
| Kolkata Knight Riders 187-6 (20 overs): Rana 80, Tripathi 53; Rashid 2-24 |
| Sunrisers Hyderabad 177-5 (20 overs): Pandey 61, Bairstow 55; Krishna 2-35 |
| Kolkata Knight Riders won by 10 runs |
| Scorecard |
A half-century from England’s Jonny Bairstow was not enough as Sunrisers Hyderabad lost by 10 runs against Eoin Morgan’s Kolkata Knight Riders in their Indian Premier League opener.
Bairstow hit 55 from 40 deliveries but Sunrisers fell short of their victory target of 188.
Earlier KKR reached 187-6 with opener Nitish Rana top-scoring with 80.
Rahul Tripathi added 53, but captain Morgan managed just two from three deliveries.
Rana’s 80 from 56 balls anchored KKR’s innings as he and Tripathi put on 93 for the second wicket.
Tripathi’s dismissal sparked a mini-collapse as KKR lost four wickets in 15 balls, including the big-hitting Morgan and Andre Russell (5), before a lively unbeaten 22 from Dinesh Karthik helped them post an imposing total.
Sunrisers lost openers David Warner and Wriddhiman Saha early in their reply, but Bairstow and Manish Pandey put on 92 for third wicket to set the platform for an exciting run chase.
Bairstow’s eventual dismissal by Australia’s Pat Cummins at the end of the 13th over checked their momentum, with Pandey’s unbeaten 61 from 44 deliveries not enough to secure victory.
Kolkata Knight Riders are next in action against champions Mumbai Indians on Tuesday, while Sunrisers take on Virat Kohli’s Royal Challengers Bangalore the following day.
Listen to commentary of Rajasthan Royals v Punjab Kings at 15:00 BST on Monday on BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra, BBC Sounds and the BBC Sport website and app.
